Escaping
by Chikanpo
Summary: After escaping when his parents were arrested, Len has to try to make it out of the country alive. He meets another runaway a few weeks into his trip, and immediately takes to her. Too bad they're being chased. T for safety. LenxRin ON HIATUS, Remade, look for: "Escaping-Remake"
1. Prologue

_**A/N: **_

_**THIS STORY HAS BEEN REMADE! The remake should be much better, so look for "Escaping - Remake" instead!**_

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_**I thought of this last Thursday during my insane math class. I finally decided to get to writing it today, and I think it turned out well. Updates will probably be slow, but I'll try for once a week. No promises though.  
Wasn't sure what to put it under. Someone has a better idea, please tell me. LenxRin. :)**_

_**DISCLAIMER: I have the twins program ^^ (it doesn't seem to be working though..)**_

_**Enjoy!**_

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**Prologue**

How did this happen?_ I thought, glancing at Rin through the bars. She was in the jail cell next to mine, looking at me sadly. We'd strangely grown this ability to communicate without speaking, and her eyes were telling me that we'd both be able to get out of here sometime. I smiled at her, hoping with all my heart that it were true. I thought back to everything that lead up to this._

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"Mom, Dad!" I shouted, jumping out the front door to hug them. They each gave a surprised squeak, before hugging me back.

"Why are you so happy today?" They asked me. I pondered it for a minute, but couldn't really think of an answer, today was just a happy day. I shrugged.

"I dunno, just a good day." I gave a big grin. "So how'd it go?" I grew alarmed when their faces quickly fell. "Oh no…" I told myself quietly. "So… What happened then?" I cautiously asked. They looked at each other, then to me.

"It didn't go well, that's for sure." Mom replied, choosing her words carefully. Dad nodded.

"We basically have one week to pay everything, or we go to jail." Dad explained. I grew teary eyed, knowing there was no way to pay _everything _on time. Dad walked up and gave me a hug. "We won't let them take you, okay? It's us that can't pay, not you. You deserve to still have a good life." My eyes widened.

"But what about you guys? It won't be a good life without you!" I exclaimed. "I'd miss you so much!" Mom sighed and shook her head, giving me a weak smile.

"You can always come and visit us." She reasoned. "Trust us, you don't want to ruin your life this early, you can still do something." I shook my head and sighed.

"It just wouldn't be the same…" I grew teary eyed again, and this time a few escaped. I quickly reached up to wipe them away, hoping no one would notice. They both did of course and quickly wrapped their arms around me.

~-The Next Day-~

My parents waved goodbye as they walked down the street from our farm, I halfheartedly waved back, not wanting them to leave. They were headed to see if the law could be convinced to let me go, should they not be able to pay on time. I almost hoped that they wouldn't let me, so I could stay with my parents, but I also didn't want to be in jail. I was torn._Probably best to just let the jury decide, and go with whatever they say._ I sighed. It just wasn't fair! A week was not nearly enough time. They should've given us at least a month, then we could've probably paid our debts, and no one would have to go to jail. People are just too greedy! I sighed and stopped my inner ranting; it couldn't do anything for me. I just headed off to feed the animals.

After feeding the cows, horses, pigs and chickens, checking for eggs, and everything else on my chore list, I decided to give my favorite horse some exercise. I took him out and put on the saddle, reigns, all the stuff I needed to ride and we took off. It was a nice day, so we just cantered out in the field for a little bit, enjoying what I figured would be one of our last days together.

It began getting dark, and I figured that my parents would be back soon, so we headed back to the stables. I put away my horse and headed back towards the house, where I sat on the porch and waited. After probably ten or so minutes of waiting, I headed inside and grabbed a banana, seeing as I was hungry. Just as I was finishing my banana, my parents walked through the door, not looking to happy. Looks like I know the outcome of the journey. I lowered my head and walked up to them, giving them a hug.

Even though they weren't my real birth parents, I loved them very much. They were the ones who raised me from my baby years. I have never known my birth parents, nor whether I had any family at all. I've always wanted to meet them, but I've also always been very happy with the family I have now. Besides, what would the chances of meeting them ever be? All I know is that my family got me from an orphanage, and they wouldn't tell us anything about my birth family, so we never really questioned it. Oh well, looks like I'm never going to find them. My parents pulled back from the hug, smiling sadly at me.

"Go gather anything you'll need to live. We're getting you out of here today. By the time they come to arrest us, you'll be long gone. You're going to take your horse and escape to the neighboring country." Mom told me. My eyes widened, I never expected this!

"What! I'm running away? Why'd you decide this?" I asked them frantically. They smiled at me.

"We're not letting you get stuck in jail this young. It may be a rough start in the new country, but you'll do better there. The taxes aren't nearly as high. We'll give you all the money we have, there's no way we're going to get this paid off in time." My eyes widened and I protested.

"But… Why don't we all just run off? We don't have to separate!" I suggested frantically. My parents shook their heads.

"If we do that, they'll come looking for all of us. If it's just you that escapes, they might let you go. We're giving you as much chance as you have to get away. All of us together would be a lot easier for them to find than just you. So quickly, go gather your stuff." They smiled, and Mom gave me a little shove towards my room. I looked at them sadly, but accepted my fate. They want the best for me, and I'm not going to ruin what they're doing for me.

I gathered as little as I'd need; just a few changes of clothes, some blankets, a comb, and a toothbrush. Don't want my teeth getting rotten. I also grabbed a sleeping bag and a tarp, wrapping everything up into the tarp. I grabbed my warmest coat, and a small box I could use for keeping almost anything. I ran back over to my parents and they handed my some money. I shoved it all into one of my coats pockets, and filled the small box with food, like oatmeal and cereal; anything that would keep for a while. I also put a small family picture in the bottom. I grabbed a couple of bananas for the road and smiled at my parents, though it was strained. I hated the idea of leaving them. I put everything down and gave them one last hug.

"I will make sure to stay safe, just for you guys." My voice cracked as I tried to avoid crying. It didn't work very well, and soon the three of us were all crying quietly.

"Thank you. Just make sure you stay safe. Stay safe.." My dad mumbled as we broke apart. I gave them one last smile and grabbed my stuff, heading out the door. I immediately headed to the stables and grabbed my horse. I carefully strapped everything to his back, and we took off down the road. I figured I should stay hidden, even though I wasn't being looked for yet. Best to stay safe and not let anyone see me, that way if they do start looking for me, no one will have seen me for a long time.

My eyes steeled in determination, I took off into the woods.

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_**A/N: Man, it looks so much smaller on here T-T It was about 1,200 words. I'll try to make every chapter around that length, unless people want a different length, just tell me. Hope you enjoyed it! I'll try to update by next Monday, depends how busy my college schedule gets. -.-**_

_**Please review, might inspire me to ignore my homework :) (which means I'd work on this one or the other one that I'm hoping to continue)**_

_**REVIEW! xD (please?)**_

_**~Chika**_


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Wow, I wrote this a lot faster than I thought I would. I'm actually dedicated to something! :0 I'm thinking this is gonna be around 10-15 chapters long, but I tend to make stuff way longer than I mean to xD Anyway, I meant to fit a lot more in than I did, but oh well ^^ Hope you like this chapter ^^**

**DISCLAIMER: Chika not own vocaloid! Chika caveman!**

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Chapter 1

~Normal POV~

After wandering through the forest the whole day, Len decided it was time to finally get some rest. He slowed his horse down to a trot, and began looking for suitable places to camp out for the night. He looked up at the sky, which was beginning to cloud over, and decided it'd better provide some cover from the rain. As luck would have it, a few feet away there was a nice, thick-branched tree, with flat ground beneath it. Deciding that he could probably find no better place for the night, much less before it began to rain, he pulled his horse to a stop and got off.

Len took the blankets and sleeping bag off of the horses back, and brought him over to the tree, where he tied him to a low branch. The horse lay down and happily ate an apple that had fallen off one of the nearby trees. _Never knew there were apple trees in this forest_. Len thought. He shrugged, that's one good thing, the less he needs to eat out of his supplies, the better.

Quickly setting up a spot to sleep, Len piled blankets and the sleeping bag on the ground beneath the tree. He gathered some of the good-looking apples from around him and began munching on them, trying to think of what he'd do once he got to the neighboring country. He thought he could farm, but that one was quickly out. Look where it'd gotten his parents? If they couldn't be successful at it together, he doubted he could do it himself. He sighed. Even though he'd only been away from them for less than a day, he missed them terribly. Now that he thought about it, he wouldn't even be able to visit them in prison now without fear of being arrested himself.

Even though he had his trusted horse, Len still felt alone. Sure he was a good horse, but one can't really hold conversations with a horse. He really hoped that when he got to the neighboring country, he could quickly make some friends. Len really had no idea when he'd make it to another country however. He had practically lived in the center of his country, and his country was constantly taking over other countries, so there was no telling when he'd be able to escape. He could be on the run for years, so there was really no need to think about what to do later. He only needed to think about now. Only thing was that there wasn't actually that much to think about. Wander. Eat. Drink. Wander. Rest. Wander. Eat. Drink. Wander. Sleep. That was pretty much it.

Len sighed as he lay down on his makeshift bed. No point in worrying now, best to just get some rest. He closed his eyes and lay there for a couple minutes before drifting to sleep, his horse curled up next to him.

~Len's POV~

I woke up freezing. It looks like the tree didn't provide as much cover as I thought it would have. My blankets were soaked through, and the sleeping bag was not much better off. I quickly got up and spread them out in the sun, hoping to dry them somewhat before I had to head out again. I walked over to where my horse was lying, and grabbed a couple of apples that had landed close to him. Eating the apple, I sat down and leaned my back on my horse's stomach. He made a small snort and shook his mane, then lay his head back down. After my small breakfast of apples, I gathered a few more good-looking apples and put them in my box of food for later. I folded up the now mostly dry blankets and sleeping bag, wrapped them up, and secured them to my horse. After I was all packed up, I hopped onto my horse and we headed off in the same direction as before.

After travelling for only a short while, I began to hear ominous noises, such as strange sounds and rustling. I slowed my horse to a slow walk to be able to hear the noise better. It was definitely rustling, but I didn't know if it was something I should fear or not. For all I know, it could be a wolf, or a little mouse. No, it sounded too big for a mouse, maybe a fox? No, it sounded too big for even a wolf! Could it be a bear? I didn't want to wait to find out, so I took off through the woods in a fast gallop, hoping my horse knew how to dodge trees at high speeds.

We made it pretty far, and I slowed us down. I couldn't hear the rustling anymore, so I figured it'd be safe to take a short break. The break consisted of eating apples, drinking from a small stream, and thinking. I figured that I should probably have something to defend myself with in case there were dangerous animals hunting me. Maybe a spear, or a bow and arrow? I decided on a spear, and began to look for a nice straight branch. I found one pretty quickly, due to the fact that I was in a _forest_.

I sat down and quickly began to sharpen it with a small knife I'd brought to open cans with. It was hard work to sharpen a stick, I had found out rather quickly. I decided to stop for a bit, and continue traveling, just in case whatever I'd heard earlier decided to follow me.

I continued on a regular schedule for the rest of the day: travel, sharpen, eat/drink. As night fell, I found a spot to rest. It didn't look like it would rain, but I decided to be safe and camped out under a nice tree again. By the end of the day, I'd made it pretty far, and my spear was nearly done. I closed my eyes and congratulated myself on a productive day. Tomorrow I'd finish the spear, and make something to carry it in so I wouldn't have to constantly hold on to it. I still missed my parents but, overall, this wasn't turning out too bad. Yet, anyway.

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**A/N: Hope you liked it! Please review! :) Next chapter will hopefully be up next week! And it also starts to get more interesting next? chapter.**

**~Chika**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi peeps! I meant to have this done earlier, but I had to write a big fat essay -.- Anyway, it should -hopefully- start getting interesting after this chapter ^^**

**DISCLAIMER:Me is not owning Vocaloid, though it would be cool to me a millionaire *stares at the sky starry eyed***

**Hope you enjoy ^^**

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**Chapter 2**

**~Len's POV~**

I woke up the next day, and was happy to see that I was dry. Looks like it didn't rain last night. I wasn't hungry, and my horse was still asleep. I didn't feel like waking him up, so I decided to work on my spear some more. I grabbed the almost fully sharpened stick leaning against the tree next to me and got back to work.

Just as I was putting on the finishing touches, my horse woke up. He quietly stood up and began to graze. I decided that I should eat too, so I put down my now finished spear and grabbed my box of food. After a quick breakfast, I decided it was time to continue travelling who knows where. I packed everything up and secured it to my horse, grabbed my spear in one hand, and trotted off.

_~About a week later~_

The traveling was beginning to get very boring. I'd been traveling for about a week, and it was just the same thing every day, with just a small change of scenery. There were no more apple trees that I could find either. I'd made a holder for my spear the day after I'd finished the spear, and it was now resting against my horse's side.

I'd had no interesting encounters of any sort-not that I'd want any dangerous ones-and I had begun setting small traps before going to bed at night. Almost every morning I'd have a rabbit or something similar in my trap, so whatever I caught would turn out to be breakfast. This way, I didn't go through my food as fast. I'm assuming that my parents were probably already in jail now, seeing as it had already been a week. I've become extra careful when it comes to cleaning up after camping for a night, seeing as I was probably being searched for now.

I sighed and pulled my horse to a stop, trying to see if there was_ anything _I could do to entertain myself. I saw absolutely nothing. Sighing again, I continued on my way.

After a little while of bored traveling, I began to notice small rustling sounds and flashes of brown in the forest behind me. I feared I was being followed by someone trying to capture me, or worse. For all I knew, it could be a grizzly bear. I could tell my horse was tired and wanted to rest, but we couldn't risk it now. I urged him a little faster, promising we'd rest soon, even though he probably didn't understand me. The rustling sound got louder, and I could've sworn I heard a distant roar. It seems like the horse heard it as well, seeing as he immediately picked up his pace.

I soon heard a high-pitched scream and wheeled my horse around. As soon as I was facing the other way, I saw someone break through the underbrush, also on a horse. They were both panicking, and the horse was mostly trampling in circles. I was about to ask what was going on when a huge grizzly bear burst out of the bushes behind them, bellowing loudly. Well, that answered my question. My hand automatically reached for my spear.

Time to see if I'm any good with it.

The bear began to charge the person on the horse. The horse freaked out even more, knocking the rider off and fleeing into the woods. The bear must have decided that the horse was too hard of a target to catch, because it slowly loomed towards the fallen person. I could tell my horse was afraid, but willing to listen to me. I was extremely glad that my horse trusted me, or this would be impossible. Well, more impossible than it already was anyway. I gathered up all the courage I had and charged, spear raised.

The bear turned in surprise, probably not expecting me to charge it. The person also looked up at me in surprise; they must have been too preoccupied with the bear to notice me before. I probably looked like a hero! I grinned at the thought, and then rethought it. Probably not, I'm all raggedy and dirty. Oh well. I still saw gratefulness in their eyes, so that made me happy and renewed my determination. I swung the spear towards the bear a couple times, but it didn't do anything. I grew panicked and began stabbing at it. The bear just grunted and knocked the spear out of my hand with one of its massive, powerful paws. For a moment, as I looked into its fierce yellow eyes, I feared that I was going to die. I tried to think of something to do, and even though it felt like it took hours, it was really only a couple of seconds before I had an idea. RUN!

I yanked my horse backwards and quickly pulled the other person up onto my horse. As soon as they had their arms securely around my middle, we took off in the same general direction her horse had, the bear hot on our tails. I made sure not to panic, so my horse wouldn't panic. If that happened, we'd just end up in the same position as before, except with no horse, or spear. We wouldn't have a chance. The person behind me clung to me like I was a lifeline, and I urged my horse to go even faster, leaning down as though it would help.

After a long while of running, I could tell that my horse wouldn't be able to make it much farther, especially with two people on its back rather than one. I pulled him to a stop by a small creek and got off, helping the person behind me. As soon as we were off, the horse dropped to the ground gratefully and began to nap.

I looked back at the person I had just saved. If felt strange to say that! I noticed that the person was a girl, probably around my age. She had the same shades of blonde hair and blue eyes as me, and I found that quite weird, it was almost like we were twins! She also looked as though she had been traveling for a while. She also seemed to realize our similarities, because her eyes grew wide in amazement and curiosity. I held out my hand for her to shake.

"Hello, my name is Len." I told her as she shook my hand. "And you are?"

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**A/N: Bet you can't guess who it is! (sarcasm) Anyway. I have most of the next chapter written on paper, I just gotta transfer it to computer -.- I'm lazy, so that may take a while, though I do have a lot of time today for some reason, so I'll try to finish it. Next chapter by Friday! (It WILL be, it's already typed up ^^)**

**Love ya'll! Reveiwers, thank you for reviewing! Please review again *-* xD And people who haven't reviewed, please do. It inspires me to continue faster if I know people actually like my work. Thanks! :)**

**~Chika**


	4. Chapter 3

**_A/N: Alright, it's up like I promised :) Nothing special to say, hope you like! xD_**

**_DISCLAIMER: ._**

**_Please enjoy!_**

**_

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Chapter 3

~Len's POV~

_Last Time:_

"_Hello, my name is Len." I told her as she shook my hand. "And you are?"_

Now:

"I'm Rin." She replied, "Thank you very much for helping me get away from that bear." She said gratefully, bowing in the process. I blushed a little and scratched the back of my neck. I didn't actually do that much...

"I-it was nothing, r-really..." I stuttered nervously, looking off to the side where my horse was taking a nap. "I didn't do that much... Mostly just ran." I grinned, still scratching the back of my head. Rin just giggled.

"Well, whatever it was, it still saved me! So thank you." She grinned at me and I smiled back.

"I guess you're welcome then." She smiled, "So what are you doing all the way out here?" I asked her, curious.

"Well what about you?" She retorted. I began to try to think of a way to answer when I realized something.

"Hey, hold on. I asked you first! You answer." I crossed my arms and pouted slightly. It always worked on my parents, why not try here? It seemingly worked, because she giggled and answered.

"Fine, I'm running away. Happy?" I looked at her dumbfounded. Could she be in the same situation as me?

"Um. Why are you running away?" I asked cautiously. She just smirked.

"Nuh-uh! You have to answer mine first. We're taking turns!" I raised my eyebrows, but answered anyway. She did practically give me my answer.

"Alright then. I'm running away too." Her eyes grew curious, but before she asked I shook my head. "Nope, you first." She made a small grunting sound and pouted.

"My family is not very nice. Not to mention safe…" She grumbled the last part, and I assumed that I probably wasn't meant to hear it. Though I do wonder what she meant by it. "Alright, now it's your turn! Why are you running away?" My face darkened a little as I tried to figure out a way to explain it. I couldn't just use small answers like she does; otherwise we wouldn't get any closer to knowing each other. I figured I'd be the bigger person and start.

"Well…"~

~time skip~

When I was done explaining, I glanced at her face. There was so much sorrow on it; it was as if it was her story rather than mine. I was actually quite surprised.

"H-hey. Are you alright?" I asked nervously, hands flying around in the air trying to decide whether I should try to pat her on the back or something to comfort her. "S-sorry if I saddened you about something. I-I didn't mean to! Honest!" I wailed, "Oh, please _please_ don't cry! I hate it when people cry. Ahhrrrrgggg!" I freaked out a little bit. She just shook her head and began to-_giggle_?

"No, no. I'm sorry. The story was just really sad!" She explained, smiling at me. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt arms wrap around me. I quickly looked down to see that she was hugging me! My face immediately turned red, and I wasn't really sure what to do, so I just kinda stood there. "It must be really lonely huh? Without them?" I nodded slightly, wondering exactly where she was going with this. "I wouldn't really know; I wasn't close to my family. I didn't really have any friends either."

I looked at the top of her head, surprised. She was such a cheerful person! I thought lonely people were always negative and sad. Seems she proved me wrong. I slowly reached down and wrapped my arms around her, hugging her back. It seemed to surprise her, since she jumped a little bit before relaxing again.

"That's really too bad.." I mumbled, "Could you tell me why?" I asked her. When she hesitated, I added, "You don't have to. I'm just curious." She shook her head and looked up at me. I just now realized that I'm taller than her. Not by much, but I'm still taller! Go me!

"I don't mind." She smiled, "I was just trying to decide where to begin." She paused again for a little while. "Well, my family had adopted me from an orphanage when I was just a baby. Kind of like you!" She giggled a bit, "I can't remember where it was or what it was called, but I don't really care. To be honest, I couldn't care less. It was probably a horrible place since they actually allowed _those people_ to adopt me." She had said 'those people' with such disdain; she must really hate them... Were they really that bad? It's too bad that such a nice girl had to be subjected to whatever they had done to her.

"Every single day I'd get a list of chores. The list was usually about five pages long, and filled with ridiculous requests, and they'd all have to be done perfectly before dinner. If they weren't done perfectly, no dinner for me!" She grumbled. Geez, that must have really sucked. Sure I'd had chores back at my house, but they were nice simple things, like feeding the horses. I'm almost afraid of the things she'd had to do. She really had been through a lot, just like me. I feel like we're gonna get along just fine. I squeezed her a little tighter, and she squeezed back.

"I have one of the lists with me; it was in my bag when I left. I'll go get it for you." I nodded as she pulled out of the hug. I was a little disappointed at the lack of warmth, but we'd have to let go sometime, right? Besides, there's no guarantee that we're going to be traveling together anyway. She may decide to just go back at the next closest town. Well, I hope she doesn't. She's nice company to have around; I don't really feel lonely anymore. I couldn't help but smile at the thought.

**_A/N: lol, didn't mean for the hug thing to happen, but hey. My stories like to have a mind of their own xD_**

**_Review pretty please! :) Next one will hopefully be up by Wednesday!_**

**_~Chika_**


	5. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Yeah, I said it'd be up on Wednesday, but I'm leaving on vacation then xD So it's up today. I may or may not have time to update later this week, but I'm hoping I will. No promises though because I don't have internet where I'm staying on my laptop. It's on their other computers though, so I could find a way to work with that. I'm gonna be busy, so still no promises. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: I'm getting tired of trying to make these funny -.- I CLAIM this DISCLAIMER! HAH!_**

**_Please enjoy;_**

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Chapter 4

~Len's POV~

Rin dug into a small backpack that I hadn't noticed before. After a minute or two of digging around, she pulled out a folded stack of papers. I carefully took the papers when she handed them to me and began leafing through them. Some of the requests on there were just ridiculous! "Give all the chickens a sponge bath" and "Clean the toilet and sink with a toothbrush" are just a couple of examples of the horrible insane things she was forced to do. And what's worse is there were more completely pointless things on the list than anything that could actually be important. I looked at her with my eyes widened.

"And they watched me to make sure I did EVERYTHING." She stated grimly. I just scratched the back of my head.

"Man, that really does suck…" I trailed off, glancing back at her. "How did you deal with it? How long did you have to do that?" She smiled sadly and took the papers back.

"Ever since I turned about five or six. I'm not really sure." She answered as she put the papers back into her backpack.

"How did you deal with that!" I exclaimed, "There's no way I could! It's just not reasonable at all!" I fumed, leaning against a tree and sliding down to a sitting position. "I understand why you left…" I mumbled. "Were there any other reasons? Or was that it?" I asked. She just shrugged.

"They just weren't very nice. They didn't care for me at all, I was just like a slave." She shook her head, eyes tearing up a little. "I wish I knew what it was like to be in a real family…" My eyes widened as her tears began to fall. I instinctively reached over and hugged her. I can't figure out why, but I just hate to see her sad. Of course I tried to comfort her.

"You know what? When my parents get out of jail, I'll bring you back to my home! You can stay with us and see what it's really like!" I smiled against her hair, and pulled her a little closer. She seemed quite surprised. "That is, if they ever get out…" I mumbled. "Well, whatever happens, I'll try to help you!" I grew determined. "I can tell you what it's like. I hope that would be enough for now." I felt her smile against my shoulder and nod.

"Thank you, that'd be great." She pulled back a little and gave me a large grin, the last of the tears disappearing from her face. A strange urge ran through me at that moment, and I couldn't help but give her a small kiss on the cheek. She jumped and a small blush appeared on her face. After I realized what I had done, I quickly jumped back from her, face flushed. It suddenly felt really hot, and I looked around, trying to find something to change the subject. I spotted my little box of food by the tree. I turned back towards her, my head still looking to the side with a small blush, and scratched the back of my head.

"So, um… Are you hungry at all?" I asked sheepishly, finally looking back at her, with a small smile on my face. She nodded silently, a small blush still evident on her face. I lightly grabbed her arm and led her toward my food box. "Go ahead and pick whatever you like." I told her. She giggled a little.

"I did bring my own food you know. I'm not that unprepared." She grabbed her own food and sat down to munch on it while I picked some out myself. We ate in silence.

When we were done eating, we decided to settle down for the night. Sure it wasn't very far into the evening, but we'd definitely had a busy day. Running from and nearly getting killed by a bear could easily tire you out, especially when you'd already been traveling for a while without a break. I knew that I wouldn't be able to fall asleep right away seeing as it was still pretty light out, so I decided that I would go out and try to find another good stick to make a spear to replace the one I lost earlier. Rin had wanted to come with me, but she looked exhausted. I told her to just stay and get some rest, and that I wouldn't be long.

It was strange having someone else around after traveling alone for so long. It was definitely nice, but I wasn't sure how long it would last. For all I know, she could decide she doesn't want to travel anymore and go stay in town, while I would still have to travel. Come to think of it, I hadn't asked her where she was planning to go. People don't usually just run away without some idea of where they're going. She must have some place in mind. If it's anywhere on my way, I'm definitely going to go with her, just to make sure that she's safe.

It's strange, how much one chance encounter can change things. All I've been doing for the past weeks was traveling, doing absolutely nothing entertaining. All of the days had begun blending together; I can't even remember anything I'd done the first week or two. I knew for a fact, however that I'd remember this day for the rest of my life. In the middle of all my boredom, someone appeared that might actually be able to accompany me for some of my journey. I had honestly thought that it would never happen, and that I would be alone the whole time, but hey, things happen. I'm just glad it was a good thing, rather than being caught and brought to jail. My eyes widened.

If she traveled with me and I was caught, there was a good chance she would go to jail too. There was no way that I'd want that to happen, but I really longed for company on this journey. She is probably the only person that would actually be able to accompany me that I would meet on this journey. I can't just not tell her that she could be brought to jail… I'll tell her about it tomorrow morning, she can make a decision then.

With that in mind, and a nice straight stick, I headed back to camp. Rin was already asleep in a sleeping bag by the time I got back. I had been out longer than I thought. I guess I just needed time to think. I wasn't tired yet, so I set up my sleeping bag next to Rin, and began to work on my new spear. Well, tomorrow will be an interesting day.

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**_A/N: No one reviewed last chapter T-T Please review this time.. I'm really beginning to think people don't like this, and it's discouraging me..._**

**_Anyway, that's it for this chapter. Hopefully I'll update later this week, but no promises._**

**_~Chika_**


	6. Chapter 5

**_A/N: Wow, complaining works lol. Thanks so much for the reviews! It inspired me to update early :)_**

**_Anonymous reveiw replies:_**

**_CantThinkOfAName: Thank you for reviewing, I'm glad you like it! Heres the update, and I hope to update soon again!  
_**

**_DISCLAIMER: Blech_**

**_IMPORTANT NOTE: I forgot to mention this earlier, but since they're both orphans in this, it's really up to you whether they're related or not. So they can be twins or just two very similar people. I think that this one works best if they're not related, but hey, it's up to you ^^_**

**_Enjoy!_**

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Chapter 5

~Len's POV~

I woke up the next morning to find Rin already awake. It was pretty light out, and my stomach growled immediately upon waking up. Rin just laughed at me.

"We're in the middle of the forest, and the first thing you can think of is food?" She just laughed harder as I grumbled walking to the food box.

"Shut up… I'm always hungry in the morning." I told her, "Though I never used to be…" I trailed off. "Huh, I dunno what's up with that." I grabbed some food and ate quickly while Rin packed up her stuff. I quickly packed up my stuff and looked around for the stick I'd found the other day. When I couldn't find it, I began to get quite annoyed. I couldn't see it anywhere! Where in the world could it have gone? Just when I was about to voice my annoyance at the fact that it had gone missing, Rin poked me on the shoulder with something rather sharp. I jumped and turned around quickly, glaring and rubbing my shoulder. "What was that fo..?" I trailed off. In her hand, Rin held the stick sharpened into a perfect spear. I was nearly speechless when I took it from her.

"I woke up early and I saw it half-sharpened. You lost your spear when you saved me, so I figured I'd help!" She grinned at me. I poked the top of it and smiled at the sharpness. I briefly wondered how she knew exactly how I'd wanted it sharpened, but I didn't really care. I was just really happy she'd helped me like that.

"Thanks! You saved me a lot of work." I smiled and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Her face reddened slightly and she stuttered.

"W-well, we'd better get going…" She trailed off, smiling lightly at me. I couldn't help but think she looked kind of cute. I felt my face heat up a little at the thought and shook my head. Then I remembered what I had been thinking about last night. It was probably a good idea to tell her about it now.

"Um, hey…" I paused for a second. She looked at me, her face seemed slightly nervous. I quickly continued, "There's one thing you should know before you decide to come with me…" She looked at me confused.

"What else could I need to know?" She wondered out loud.

"Well… Um… You see…" I tried to start, but my mind blanked and I sighed. "If someone sees me, I'm going to be thrown in jail. If they see you with me, you most likely will as well… There's also the fact that I won't be able to go to any towns to get supplies. It's going to be a really tough journey, but I definitely wouldn't mind your company. It's been quite lonely these past few weeks…" I was quite surprised when she gave me a large whack on the forehead. I stumbled back a few steps and put my hand over where she had hit me, frowning.

"You think that I hadn't thought of that!" She exclaimed. "Your parents were arrested and you ran off, of course you would be being searched for! Look at it this way, if we do need supplies, you can wait in the woods and I'll go get them." She reasoned. It was a good idea. I considered it for a moment, but shook my head upon realizing something.

"No, that won't work. I'm pretty sure you already noticed this, but we look extremely similar." She nodded her head. "They'd probably arrest you without a second thought! Then when you don't come back, I'd go looking for you and BAM! We're both in jail. I don't want that… It'd feel like my fault, and it would be…" She just snickered.

"So you'd actually come looking for me?" My face reddened a bit and I looked down.

"Well, yeah…" I mumbled, "You're the only friend I have and I-Hey! Hold on, don't change the subject!" I shouted, face reddened even more, fists clenched slightly. Rin laughed again.

"I guess I never thought about that. Well, that means I couldn't go back either, and I don't wanna travel alone, so looks like I'm stuck with you anyway." She stated, grinning. I smiled back at her, glad that she was going to stay with me.

"Alright then, I'm glad you have to stick with me!" I flashed her a quick smile and put my stuff up onto the horse, along with Rin's things that the horse hadn't taken off with. "Well, we should head off now." I smiled at her, getting on the horse. I held my hand out to her. She took it and I pulled her up onto the horse. "Here we go!" The horse began trotting on my command.

We'd only been traveling for a short while when I heard shouts from the general area we had slept in.

"Hey, someone spent the night here!" One voice shouted.

"Do you think it was him?" Another one replied, a little fainter than the other once.

"Well duh! Who else would be out camping in the middle of nowhere like this! Besides, look over here, horse tracks. They're pretty fresh too; he left not very long ago." I looked at Rin. At least they still thought it was only me. That means that if they do catch me, she can hide and get away. I whispered this to her quietly. She firmly shook her head.

"We're in this together now. Where you go, I go." I was about to argue when she interrupted, "No buts." I sighed and slumped my shoulders. At least this meant she was definitely going to stay with me. I brightened up a little at the thought.

"Well, we'll just have to make sure not to get caught then. Won't we?" I looked back at her and smiled, determination in my eyes. She nodded. "Okay, we need to lose them. Tell me if you see a stream anywhere." She nodded and I urged the horse to a gallop, knowing they wouldn't be far behind.

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_**A/N: Next one will hopefully be up soon, but I don't know when. Please review or I'll complain again! *-* xD Luv you guys!**_

_**~Chika**_


	7. Chapter 6

**_A/N: Ok, here's the next one. A little later than I'd hoped, but oh well. I have up through chapter 9 of this written now, and I'm not sure if it's close to ending or not xD I need to think of an ending first. It was funny cause while I was writing chapter 9, I realized I was in a fluff writing mood, so it turned out kinda fluffy. Heh, didn't mean for that to happen, but oh well. So if you like fluff look forward to chapter 9 ^^ and a little bit next chapter as well actually. My fluff-urge isn't over yet though, so I may end up writing some random oneshot to get rid of it so I can focus better xD_**

**_Aaaaaanyway. Thank you for the reviews ^^ Hope you enjoy this chapter._**

**_DISCLAIMER: -fart-_**

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Chapter 6

~Len's POV~

We'd probably travelled about a mile when Rin poked my back and pointed at a distant stream to our right. I silently nodded a thank you towards her and slightly angled the horse towards it. If we made a too direct turn, it would be suspicious, but if it seems like we just happened upon it, my idea would be more believable. As soon as we reached the stream, I jumped off and helped Rin off.

"What are you doing!" She nearly shouted as I quickly covered her mouth.

"Move things around, make it seem like we stayed here for a while. I'll go make a false trail." Without waiting for an answer I took off into the woods and kicked up dirt randomly, leaving a 'trail' for the people to follow. I rushed back and we jumped back onto my horse and took off through the stream, where the horse couldn't leave any prints.

"Hopefully that will lead them off the trail for a while. If not, we're in for a rough time." I stated, urging the horse through the shallow water. She nodded against my back and held on to my waist tightly to make sure she wouldn't fall off. It felt nice to have someone hanging on to me; someone depending on me. I smiled as she squeezed a little tighter and nuzzled her face into my back. I hope that when we get to somewhere we can actually stay, she'll stay with me.

We traveled a long ways, and any time we stopped for a break, we'd just keep walking slowly. We could not afford to stop, even if we did manage to throw them off of our trail for a little bit, they'd be sure to figure out eventually that we went into the stream. We had travelled for longer than I usually did, and then decided to stop by a large tree next to the stream to sleep for the night. We definitely couldn't afford to make a fire, so it was going to be a cold night. We set up the sleeping bags, and me being the nice person I am, I gave her the spare blanket. I would hate myself if I had caused her to get frostbite by selfishly taking the blanket. I could deal with being cold. We bid each other a good night and went to sleep.

The next morning, the sun woke us up bright and early. We had made sure to sleep where the sun would hit our faces early so we could get an early start. I began to stir in order to get up, when I realized that I could hardly move. I had gotten so cold in the middle of the night that I nearly got frostbite. I noticed that Rin had gotten up quickly, so she was fine. Good. That means that the blanket served its purpose.

"You gonna get up any time soon?" She looked at me and asked. I smiled sheepishly.

"It seems I got a mild case of frostbite. Hopefully the sun will warm me up." I explained. Her eyes widened.

"It's because you gave me the extra blanket, isn't it?" She exclaimed, "You get the extra blanket tonight!" I opened my mouth to argue, but she cut me off. She really seems to like doing that. "No buts!" She seems to like saying that too. She walked over to me and pulled me out of the sleeping bag, helping me lay out in the sun in order to warm up my legs. The sun began its job, and I was able to move again soon after. I smiled at her gratefully.

"Thanks." I looked at where the sun was. "They're sure to have figured out that it was all just a trick by now… We'd better get moving." She nodded her agreement and we quickly packed up and made it look like we were never there. Who knows? We could get lucky and they'd see no camping spots here, then they'd think we'd gone the other way down the river. That would buy us even more time.

The day of walking through the stream was pretty uneventful. Rin and I spent most of the time just talking and telling stories of us when we were little kids. It was actually a pretty fun day over all. I learned that she absolutely loves oranges, and pretty much anything that rolls and can smash stuff, such as boulders. It's kind of funny to think that such a cute, small girl enjoys smashing things like that; but hey, it's one of her charms. I also told her about how my favorite food was a banana, and how I had nearly gotten trampled by a pig, and still ended up extremely muddy about a year ago. It was actually a pretty funny story now that I think of it. It definitely wasn't funny to me at the time; though my parents' thought it was hilarious. We walked late into the night, trying to stay as far away as possible from the people chasing us.

We finally decided to camp out for the night when the moon was high in the sky. The horse collapsed happily, glad to be getting a rest after such a long day. I grabbed the sleeping bags and blankets from its back and handed Rin hers. We set up our sleeping bags and I tried to give Rin the extra blanket, but no matter what I did she wouldn't take it. We both began to get frustrated as we argued with each other for a while, before she finally just threw the blanket into my face and dragged her sleeping bag right next to mine. I looked at her in confusion and she just smiled at me.

"There, now we can share. No more arguing." I blushed a little bit, but smiled nonetheless.

"That's a good idea." I agreed. We both lied down in our sleeping bags, facing the sky. I pulled the blanked over both of us. We both snuggled down into the sleeping bags and went to sleep. Just before I fell asleep, I remember thinking that I hoped nearly every day of our travels would be like this one. It had been a good day. I smiled as I fell asleep.

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**_A/N: Alright, next chapter should be up by Friday, maybe earlier if your lucky ~^ Review please! See ya!_**

**_~Chika_**


	8. Chapter 7

**_A/N: Alright, it's up on Friday as promised ^^ And I did end up writing a fluff thing, though it turned out to be a twoshot instead of a oneshot. If you're interested, please check it out ^^ Well, anyway. Thanks a lot to my reviewers, you help me remember to write xD (I'm a VERY forgetful person -.-) Please enjoy!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: . Nope, I can't sing either._**

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Chapter 7

~Len's POV~

I was standing on the top of a nice grassy hill with one tree that provided a nice amount of shade. I looked around, curious about what I was doing, and how I'd gotten here. I heard a shout and looked in the direction I'd heard it from. Only a little ways away, my parents were standing! A huge grin grew on my face as I took off down the hill towards them.

As soon as I reached them, I jumped to tackle them in a hug, but they turned to dust in my arms. I quickly fell to my knees, lifting the dust in my hands. My parents had just been there! They couldn't have turned to dust, could they? I looked around. I couldn't see anything for miles; even the hill with the tree was gone. All I could see was an empty expanse of grass. Glancing back at the dust in my hands, my eyes began to water. I left alone yet again. Wait. Alone? Where was Rin?

Almost as soon as I'd thought about her, Rin appeared on the horizon walking towards me. I was now somehow in a forest, but my horse and supplies were nowhere to be seen. The only recognizable things here were me and Rin. Out of nowhere, I was overwhelmed with an emotion of happiness. I ran straight at Rin and caught her in a tight hug as soon as I was close enough. I could tell she was talking to me, but I couldn't understand the words. Just as I released her from the hug, I heard loud thumping noises surrounding us. I pulled her behind me and pulled a knife from seemingly nowhere. A large man on a horse stepped out of the bushes.

I could tell his mouth was moving, and he was saying something, but I couldn't tell what it was. All of a sudden, he jumped off of his horse and sprung at me, sword raised. I quickly pushed Rin out of the way and dodged to the side myself, instinctively pushing the knife towards the man. Just as I was about to strike him, everything misted out and I was standing on top of the hill again. I looked around, but grass and the tree were all I could see. I tried climbing the tree to see if I could see anything on the horizon, but no luck. I dropped out of the tree and sighed. Now what? I just decided to walk in a straight line, and hope I find something.

I'd been walking for a while, when all of the grass and sky just disappeared. All that was beyond it was whiteness. I shrugged and kept walking into the whiteness. As soon as I stepped foot off of the grass, everything became white. I jumped and stepped back to where the grass was before, and the normal scenery retuned. That was weird. I experimentally stepped forward again, and everything turned white. Well, this was certainly strange. Nothing seemed wrong with the whiteness, so I just kept walking in it. Suddenly, Rin appeared again, just a few feet away and smiling. I smiled back and walked towards her, my arms wide open.

She surprised me be running straight into my arms, knocking me to the ground. We just lay there for a moment, arms wrapped around each other. We eventually sat up and looked at each other. She laid her head on my shoulder, and rested her hand on mine. I blushed and looked at her surprised. She looked back up to me and began leaning up. My body moved itself and began to move my head down. In my head, I was extremely surprised. What the heck was I doing! Our faces kept getting closer together, and in my head I panicked even further, the me on the outside was acting like I'd done this a thousand times before. I was so confused.

We were now just about a centimeter apart, and Rin closed her eyes. I could feel my own eyes slipping closed as well, and I felt her warm breath on my face. We slowly pressed our lips together, and my eyes snapped open.

I was back in my sleeping bag in the middle of the forest. I looked around for a second, confused. I looked to my right, and saw Rin laying there in her sleeping bag looking very peaceful. It was still pretty dark out, so something must have woken me up. I wondered what it was for a minute, and then my dream came back to me. I immediately blushed bright red and my head snapped towards Rin. Why in the world had I dreamed about that! Sure I thought she was cute, but would I really..?

It was just a dream. Nothing more. I robotically lay back down and closed my eyes, willing myself to fall back asleep. After about ten minutes, I figured that I wasn't going to be able to so I rolled over to face Rin. She didn't look too cold, and I wasn't that cold either, so the blanket sharing idea worked. I smiled and placed my head back on the small pillow, closing my eyes. For some reason, sleep came easily after that.

I woke up the next morning to shifting on my side. I opened my eyes and saw Rin facing me, eyes closed peacefully, still asleep. She was closer to me than she was when I fell asleep the night before. I realized that we had both moved closer to each other in our sleep, probably just moving towards a source of heat, but I still blushed anyway. We were both pressed against our sleeping bags against each other. I remembered my dream yet again, and my face heated up.

My eyes slowly drifted towards her lips. They did look nice and soft. I smiled and leaned toward her, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. If I ever did want to kiss her on the lips, I'd want her to at least be awake.

I finally looked out towards the actual forest. The sun was beginning to rise, so there was really no point in trying to fall back asleep. I felt more rustling next to me and looked back at Rin. Her eyes slowly opened and she yawned. She saw me sitting up looking at her and smiled.

"Morning." She stated as she yawned yet again and stretched. She then noticed that we were pretty much squished against each other and laughed. "We must've been pretty cold last night huh?" She giggled, smiling at me yet again. My eyes began to drift toward her lips again and I quickly looked off to the side, blushing. Am I never going to be able to look at her properly again?

"Y-yeah. I guess it got pretty cold…" I trailed off as I looked at her again and smiled. "We'd better get going. Don't want them to catch up to us." I got up and jumped at how cold the air was. I wasn't hungry amazingly, so I just packed up my stuff while Rin ate. She was done quickly, and it was time to head out.

**_A/N: Alright, next one hopefully by Sunday, might be Monday or Tuesday though. The weekend is gonna be busy and I may not get time to update. Will be up by Tuesday for sure though ^^ Please review!_**

**_Ciao~_**

**_~Chika_**


	9. Chapter 8

**_A/N: Alright I _forced_ myself to get on the computer and update so it would be up on time. xD Just kidding, sorry I didn't have time earlier, but I've been busy writing essays for my English final tomorrow. I should be doing that right now actually, but I promised that I'd update. So here it is :) If you liked last chapter, you'll probably really like the next chapter xD It should hopefully be up by Thursday or Friday. Anyway, hope you like this chapter!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: Still not in ownership of Crypton or Vocaloid. Sad face._**

**_Please enjoy!_**

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Chapter 8

~Len's POV~

I had eventually calmed down and become less awkward around Rin throughout the day, though I still caught myself staring a few times. Ever since that stupid dream I just can't seem to get her out of my head. It was about halfway through the day and we had not heard nor seen our pursuers at all. We must've done a good job, throwing them off of our trail like that. Rin and I had talked for most of the time we'd been riding, but now we'd fallen into a comfortable silence. We'd just sat there and looked into the trees. It was a pretty nice afternoon. I was actually surprised that it hadn't rained at all since the first day I'd been traveling. Oops, I hope that didn't jynx it. My horse was getting tired, so I decided to give him a break.

We stopped for only a few minutes to eat, and then continued on our way. Rin and I waded through the stream and I led the horse by its reigns. We eventually started up conversation again, since just walking in silence got pretty boring. We both had run out of interesting stories about our past rather quickly, since we didn't have that much to tell. Eventually, we somehow got on to the topic of the future. The main topic we talked about was what we were going to do when we finally reached a place that we could permanently stay. I laughed at Rin's answer.

"I'd take a nice, warm bath!" She exclaimed as she laughed. I laughed with her.

"That would be nice, wouldn't it?" I agreed, looking up at the sky with my eyes closed and grinning. The sun felt nice on my face, nice and warm. We fell back into silence as we got lost in our thoughts once again. It seems like we both thought of something to say at the same time.

"Hey, Rin?"

"Um, Len?"

We immediately began to laugh. "You go ahead." She told me. I quickly shook my head.

"No, no. Ladies first." I said grinning. I was a little embarrassed about my question. It was something best saved for later, after she knows me a little better. She smiled at me.

"Alright. What are you going to do when we get there?" She asked me. I looked at her confused. Didn't we just talk about that? She saw my confusion and clarified, "I mean like for work. Or what kind of a place you'd like to live in." Oh.

"Well, I'm not really sure about working yet. Hopefully something that pays well so I could own my own house. It'd probably be a small house, but that'd be fine with me." I contemplated for a minute, but that was all I could come up with. "What about you?" She lowered her head a little at my question.

"I don't know… There aren't very many jobs that a girl like me would be hired for. I'd probably end up having to live on the streets and scrounge for food. Maybe I'd live in the forest, it hasn't been that bad…" I looked at her, horrified.

"And you're _okay_ with that!" I questioned her, slightly angry. She shrugged, looking somewhat hopeless. "No. You're too good for that!" I exclaimed and she looked up at me, surprise etched on to her face. I reached over and gently held her hand as we walked. "You can live with me. I'll make sure to get enough food for both of us. Then we can both be happy." I stated, looking down and blushing. She pulled me to a stop and smiled at me.

"You don't have to do that." I was about to protest, but she held up the hand I wasn't holding and pressed her index finger to my lips, causing me to blush. "But if you don't mind, I'd absolutely love to live with you." She smiled warmly at me. My blush grew larger. Looks like I didn't have to ask her later after all, she already would like to live with me! I gave her a huge grin and pulled her into a giant bear hug.

"Thank you!" I laughed into her hair, extremely happy for some reason and squeezed her tight. When I finally let go, she looked at me with confusion in her eyes.

"Why are you thanking me? I should be thanking you." She contemplated for a minute, and then her eyes lit up. "You _want_ me to live with you, don't you?" I felt my face heat up and looked to the side, her grin grew wider. "Is that what you were going to ask me earlier?" My face got even warmer, I could've sworn it was the color of a tomato, and I nodded. She laughed a little and pinched my red cheeks.

"You're so fun to tease, you know that?" She laughed even more, and I just stood there, embarrassed as I could be. "You didn't need an excuse to ask me, I would've said yes anyway." She stated smiling, a slight blush on her cheeks as well. I couldn't help but smile. I grabbed her hand and began walking again.

"We've stood here for too long, we need to keep walking…" I trailed off, my head lowered since the redness wouldn't go away. "None of that will ever happen if we get caught, so we've got to make sure to keep moving!" I declared as she caught up to me. Neither of us let go of the other's hand, so I intertwined our fingers and gave her a quick smile. She smiled back and squeezed my hand a little. We continued in silence, happy smiles on our faces.

We got back onto my horse after a little bit and continued on our way. Night eventually fell and we stopped in a clearing next to the stream. It was already getting quite cold; I could tell it was going to be even colder than the night before. It must be getting close to winter. I pulled down our sleeping bags and tossed them to Rin, who began setting them up. I pulled out our food boxes and set them by the closest tree. Rin came back over and joined me in eating. While we were eating, I noticed something at the bottom of my food box. Upon closer inspection, I realized it was a picture of me with my parents! I had completely forgotten that I put that in here! I smiled as I pulled it out.

"Hey, Rin?" She looked over at me. "I almost forgot. I have a picture of me and my parents; did you want to see it?" Her eyes widened and she nodded quickly. I smiled and handed it to her. It looked like it was taken a year or two ago, before all the bad stuff had started happening. I was sitting on Dad's shoulders, his hands on my knees to keep me there, and Mom was standing next to us, her hand making little bunny ears over my head. I laughed at the memory. After I had seen the picture, I wanted to retake it because I didn't want the bunny ears. I looked over at Rin to see her reaction, and she had tears in her eyes! She smiled through her tears and continued looking at the picture. I was about to question her when she spoke.

"You all look so happy… It's horrible you had to leave them." She wiped her tears and handed me the picture. I gave her a sad smile.

"Yeah I know, I really miss them… But think of it this way; if that hadn't happened then we never would have met each other. What would we be doing now?" She shrugged.

"You'd still be happy with your family. I probably would've headed back to mine eventually, gotten yelled at, then back to work. I personally like this better, but you should be happy with your family." I just shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess. But I really don't mind travelling like this. It's actually kind of nice. Besides, I wouldn't want you to have to go back." I told her, carefully taking her hand in mine, my thumb rubbing the top of her hand. "Besides, there's nothing we can do to change the past, so there's no point in dwelling on it, right?" She nodded at me.

"You're right. We should probably get to sleep now; the sun is going to wake us up early tomorrow." I nodded my agreement, sadly letting go of her hand to put away our food. I walked over to where our sleeping bags were, Rin already inside. The set up looked kind of funny, so I stood there for a minute and tried to figure it out. After a second I realized it; her sleeping bag was zipped up to mine. Instead of two normal sized sleeping bags in front of me, there was one large sleeping bag. I looked at Rin, and from what I could tell, her face was bright red.

"I-it looked like it was going to get r-really cold tonight…" She trailed off, then started back up, "I figured we'd stay warmer if we shared body heat…" I smiled, she was just too cute!

"It was a good idea." I told her, scooting in next to her. She looked over at me surprised. I was right, her face was red as a perfectly red apple. I smiled softly at her, eyes slightly closed. It was so warm I was already getting tired. "Night." I yawned as I shut my eyes, wiggling a little bit to get comfortable.

"G'night." I heard her say back, and felt her move around a little next to me. Just as I was about to fall asleep, I felt something warm grab my hand. It seems like we've grown a strange fascination with holding each other's hands. I didn't mind one bit and squeezed her back, smiling as I drifted off to dreamland.

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**_A/N: Well, that was that chapter. Almost double the other chapters xD I'd assume people like that though, so yeah. Hope you liked it! Next should be up Thursday or Friday at latest. Please keep the reviews coming, that way I remember to write ^^ (I'm a procrastinator. I haven't written anything past chapter nine, so updates may be slower after that one is up, but I'll also have a break from college, so who knows?) Anyway, hope you liked it!_**

**_~Chika_**


	10. Chapter 9

**_A/N: Heh, this might be the longest chapter yet ^^ It's definitely my favorite typed one at the moment xD I hope to put the next one up on Sunday, but it's not typed so no promises. I have it written though, so maybe :) Anyway, hope you like this chapter!_**

**_-Oops, thought I'd already posted this. Sorry, it's a little late.-_**

**_DISCLAIMER: CHIKA IS NOT IN OWNERSHIP!_**

**_Enjoy~_**

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Chapter 9

~Len's POV~

I awoke to a sudden thump against my back. Looking over my shoulder to see what it was, I saw Rin curled up against my back. It seemed like she had just rolled over and run into him. I chuckled a little bit, then realized that she was opening her eyes. I looked at the sky; it was still really dark. She shouldn't be waking up now, it was probably around midnight. I rolled over in order to face her better. She looked up at me with wide eyes. I looked down at her questioningly.

"I just had the weirdest dream." She told me, eyes staring off into nothing. "I was on this big grassy hill with a tree." So far it sounded exactly like the one I had a couple of days ago! I wonder how similar they really are… My thought trailed off as my cheeks heated up a little; luckily it was dark so she couldn't see. "I walked down the hill and saw this huge pile of oranges!" She grinned largely at this, and I couldn't help but chuckle; she'd told me about her strange obsession with oranges the other day. I can't really say anything though; I absolutely love bananas for no reason. "I ran towards the oranges and reached down to pick them up, but they just turned into dust." Okay, this was getting very similar to mine. I cut in.

"I've had one like that. Big hill, tree, grassy area. But it was my parents instead of oranges." I told her. Her eyes widened and she laughed a little.

"We're even having similar dreams. That's kinda funny." She giggled. I joined in and nodded my agreement, motioning for her to continue. "Anyway, I was alone on a huge grassy area, and I wondered where you were. Then you just appeared in front of my on the horizon, so I walked towards you. Then we were suddenly in a forest." I nodded, this was just like my dream, but from her point of view. That's just so weird!

"Yep, everything's the exact same as my dream." I told her when she paused. "Well, except that it's from your point of view." She giggled a little.

"Yeah. You randomly ran and hugged me, and I know I said something, but I can't remember what it was…" She trailed off for a second. "Then someone on a horse jumped out of the bushes and you pulled out a knife. You and the guy started fighting, then everything just kind of faded out." She looked at me. "Still the same?" I nodded.

"Yep, I remember fighting that knight guy. And it all just kind of misted away." She nodded.

"Then I was on the tree hill again, but I couldn't see anything else. I looked from the top of the tree, but there was still nothing, so I just kept walking straight. There was eventually a barrier of white. It was really weird…" She trailed off.

"Yeah, I had the same thing. You step in it and everything became white, then you step back and it's back to what it was before?" I asked her. She nodded.

"Yeah, exactly. So I walked in the whiteness for a while and then you appeared." She narrowed her eyes in thought, and her eyebrows creased. "I was really happy, so I ran and hugged you, but I hugged too hard and you fell over." She giggled a little bit. Well, here comes the awkward part of the dream. I wonder if it was the same for her? Probably, it was the same up until now. Her face was still contorted, as if she was trying to remember what happened next.

"We sat down and I leaned my head on your shoulder…" She trailed off again, thinking some more. My face reddened a little, it seems like it was the same after all. "And then we…" All of a sudden, Rin jumped and her face turned bright red, even in the dark I could tell. Yep, it was the same.

"Heh, I'm going to guess from your reaction that what happened next was the exact same as my dream." I told her, scratching the back of my head, giving her an embarrassed smile. She looked at me with a sheepish smile, giggling a little. "It's weird that we'd have such similar dreams like that though." I trailed off, contemplating what could've caused it. I came up with nothing. "I guess we've just been around each other too much." I grinned at her. "That's not a bad thing." I added in case I'd somehow offended her. She just laughed.

"Yeah, maybe. When did you have that dream?" She asked curiously.

"Last night. Not this night, but the night before." I told her. She giggled a bit.

"So that's why you were so awkward and…" She trailed off, trying to find a word. "…Blush-y, in the morning." She reasoned, smiling. I nodded, blushing slightly. "Well, we need to go back to sleep or we won't be able to walk tomorrow." She laughed. I agreed with her, it'd be a problem if we were found because of lack of sleep. We lay down and pressed our backs together, both curled up slightly. We said our goodnights and fell asleep pretty quickly.

I woke up first the next morning to find myself hugging Rin to my chest tightly, her arms wrapped around my torso. I blushed, well THAT was different than how we'd fallen asleep. Her head was tucked just below my chin, and our legs were tangled together. We were definitely warm, it was going to be awkward when she woke up though, especially considering that we both knew what the other had dreamed about. I looked down at the top of her head and smiled. Maybe that meant that she wouldn't mind if I…? I shook my head quickly.

She made a small sound and shifted her head slightly, and I could see her face. She looked so cute when she was asleep. I leaned down and rested my forehead against hers. It was nice and warm. I smiled and sighed contentedly, closing my eyes and just enjoying her warmth. I laid like that for a minute, before realizing that it wasn't dark out anymore. My eyes opened and I saw that it was past sunrise. We needed to get up.

I looked down and prepared to wake her up, but she just looked so content that I couldn't do it. I sighed and hugged her closer; we could afford a few minutes to just lay there. I smiled as I looked down at her. Of course my eyes immediately floated towards her lips. I just couldn't help it, they looked so soft. I don't think I've ever wanted anything as much as I wanted to kiss her right then. I shook my head to try to clear my mind, but my eyes just stayed where they were, refusing to move.

I knew that if I did, I wouldn't be able to look at her without blushing. She would probably be suspicious, and didn't I even say that I didn't want to kiss her unless she was awake? But it would be so easy, she wouldn't have to know… GAH! My brain continued to argue with itself, and I was slowly leaning down the entire time. All my thoughts came to a halt however, when I realized that I was just about a centimeter from her lips. I could feel her breath hitting my lips, and I wanted to lean the rest of the way so bad it almost hurt. I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding and looked at her eyes. Luckily, they were still closed.

I stayed like that for a few seconds before finally making the decision. She'd never know, and I could just blame the awkwardness on the dream. I began to lean the rest of the way, eyes closing when I felt her shift and she began to yawn. I immediately pulled my head back, eyes widening and face heating up. Oh, please don't let her have noticed that! The thought that I should have been quicker passed my mind, but I quickly shot it down. There was still the awkwardness of us waking up like this to deal with. She opened her eyes and looked at my face.

"Morning." She said smiling. I was expecting a different reaction, not that. I smiled back of course.

"Morning to you too." It seems that she realized then exactly how we were laying. She blushed and giggled. "We were cold again last night huh?" Still not what I was expecting, but I'll take it. I nodded.

"It seems so." I looked up towards the sky and she followed my gaze. "We'd better get going. Don't want those people to catch up to us." I reasoned. She nodded, but as we began to untangle ourselves, we heard another voice.

"A little late for that." We both froze in horror and looked around. There were a bunch of soldiers on horseback.

We were caught.

**_A/N: Well, there ya go -.^ Big change in mood there huh. Heh. I'll try not to make you wait too long for the next one. SHOULD be Sunday. Hopefully. Pretty please review? I'm missing the one chapter that I got like four on T-T_**

**_~Chika_**


	11. Chapter 10

**_A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews guys! I just realized that I can reply to Anonymous reviews here ^^_**

**_Pandombie: Hah, I understand completely. I needed something to mess them up and lead to this chapter though. Heh. Thanks for the reveiw!_**

**_MasterVoiceMixer: YAY! INTERNATIONAL FANS! xD Please don't kill yourself 0.o That would suck. Heh. And here's the next one =D_**

**_I'm glad, people really seem to like this story now =D I was a little worried in the beginning that no one would like it, but here we are. Thank you so much guys, you seriously mean a lot to me ^^_**

**_DISCLAIMER: Chika - is not in ownership of teh vocaloids. (Heh typo. Imma leave it!)_**

**_Hope you enjoy!_**

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Chapter 10

~Len's POV~

We immediately jumped out of the sleeping bags and began backing up towards a tree. I thought we'd lost them! How did they manage to catch up to us so fast? They hadn't been anywhere near us the day before-I'd climbed a tree and checked. There was no way they could've caught up… Unless… Had they been traveling the entire night as well? That was the only logical explanation, and that meant that they _had_ to be tired. Maybe there was a chance we could get away.

I felt my back hit a tree and we both stopped as I felt my hand hit something hard. I inwardly smiled as I closed my hand around it and hid it behind my back. I leaned over to Rin and whispered my idea into her ear.

"I'll hold them off, you gather the stuff as fast as you can and run." She was about to protest, but I interrupted her. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll steal one of their horses. Meet me where we camped out last time." She hesitated for a moment before she nodded slightly. One of the horsemen saw our quiet exchange and spoke up.

"Aww. The little boy's telling his little girlfriend to run for it! How cliché." He taunted, then his face grew serious. "Well, you two might as well just come quietly, or we may have to get violent." He directed his gaze at me. "You don't want your little girly getting hurt, do you?" I gulped. If they hurt Rin, I'd kill them. I don't know how, but I'd do it! I looked him in the eyes and glared sharply, and he actually flinched. Did I really look that scary? I inwardly grinned, I _can_ be scary!

The man motioned for us to move forward, but I put my arm in front of Rin and stepped in front of her. "There is no way you're going to touch her!" I shouted angrily as I took off running at them, pulling the spear out from behind my back. Rin began gathering our things immediately while I charged. The horsemen just laughed as I plunged my spear towards the leader, but he dodged it easily. Just as it passed by his shoulder he yanked it out of my grip, wrenching my shoulder slightly, and tossed it behind him. Man, I just have no luck with spears…

The man urged his horse forward a few steps and yanked my arm behind be, holding me in such a way that I couldn't move without causing intense pain that nearly made me scream. I tried to escape anyway when I saw the remaining horsemen closing in on Rin, who was just beginning to get on the horse. I gathered up the rest of my strength and shouted.

"NO! Rin, run!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. She turned to face me and her eyes widened. That was the last thing I saw before the pain in my shoulder became too much and I blacked out.

~TIME SKIP~

"en… Len… Len!" I heard my name being called. The sound was echoing somewhat and it sounded like Rin's voice. All of a sudden, everything that had happened came back to me and I sprung up. Looking around, I was horrified to see that I was inside a jail cell. Alone in a jail cell. Where was Rin? And why had I heard her voice a few minutes ago?

"Rin!" I shouted for her, and heard a reply to my right. I looked over and through the tight bars on the other side of the cell and saw a slight blonde color. "Rin!" I exclaimed as I scrambled up and ran towards the bars. The floor was slippery and I all but smacked into the bars in my rush. I looked at her through the bars and frantically asked questions. "Are you alright? They didn't hurt you did they? How did we get here?" She gave me a small smile.

"I'm more worried about you. You're the one they beat up. I'm fine." She replied. "As for how we got here, I'm not sure. I ended up passing out as well somehow." Almost as soon as I thought of it, the harsh pain in my shoulder came back. I grunted and grabbed it with my other hand, falling down to one knee. That's going to be hurting for a while.

"I'm fine." My voice grunted out when her face grew worried. "My shoulder's just a little sore..." She smiled at me.

"I'm glad that's it. I was worried they'd done more when you didn't wake up." How long had I been out? I decided to voice this out loud, and her answer surprised me. "About a day and a half longer than me. I was really starting to worry, but when I saw your face start twitching I immediately started calling your name to wake you up. I'm glad it worked." She gave me a very relieved smile. Wow, I've been out for a while. I hope she didn't panic or anything…

"Sorry for leaving you alone here for so long." I told her.

"You couldn't help it. It's fine." From the way she smiled I could tell that she was telling the truth. I was about to reply when I heard another voice.

"It seems our little runaway has finally woken up." It said. I looked in the direction of the voice and saw a tall, somewhat dirty man on the other side of the cell, by the door. He smiled at me. An actual smile, not a mocking one or something like that; it caught me off-guard somewhat.

"Um. Who are you?" I asked, somewhat confused.

"I'm the guard watching over this area." He replied as his face gained a contemplating look. "It's too bad you were caught. I heard about you from your parents and hoped that you'd get away." My eyes widened, and I saw Rin's widening out of the corner my eyes. He knew my parents! Were they here? Now?

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**_A/N: Le gasp! Heh. Yeah, it's a day later than I said, but I posted that chapter a day later than I meant to, so yeah. Next chapter is written, but not typed up. I'll try to get it typed up by Wednesday, and hopefully up by Thursday._**

**_Please review! I always reply. I like to reply =D_**

**_~Chika_**


	12. Chapter 11

**_A/N: Alright, here's the next one. Thank you for the quick reviews people, it makes me write faster ^^ The problem is, I have nothing past this written down -.- So I may be a little slower on the updates, but I hope not. Oh, and there's an important note at the bottom. (Don't worry, nothing bad xD I always worry when authors write that)_**

**_No anon review to reply to this time._**

**_DISCLAIMER: Noooooootttttttt meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee_**

**_Please enjoy!

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Chapter 11

~Len's POV~

"W-W-Wait! You know my parents?" I exclaimed in surprise. "Are they here? Now?" I asked quickly. I want to see them so bad! There's a chance that they're here too! I might be able to see them! The guard laughed at my excitement.

"Yeah, I know'em. But they're in a different part of the jail. My position got moved, so I haven't actually seen them for a while." Wow, so I ended up in the same jail as them somehow, but I still couldn't see them! Unless…

"Is there any way for me to see them? Like when we eat or something?" I asked hopefully, but the guard sighed and shook his head.

"This place is falling apart. The head people are afraid that if the prisoners left their cells it'd be easy for them to escape. You don't ever really get to leave your cells unless it's something really _really _important…" He explained. My eyes widened in horror. What is this place? I looked over at Rin and noticed that she appeared terrified. It hurt so bad to not be able to go over and hug her, so I settled instead for slipping my hand through the bars and grabbing hers.

"Don't worry Rin. We'll get through this; they can't keep us here forever." I reasoned, hoping it would cheer her up at least a little, but it didn't seem to help much. "Then we won't have to worry about leaving the country. You can come live with me and my parents; we won't have to struggle on our own." At that she smiled and nodded, mouthing a quiet okay. Good, I managed to cheer her up a little. I looked up at the guard. "How long are we going to be here anyway?" The guard shrugged.

"I don't know. People don't usually get to leave this place unless they're proven innocent or something like that…" He replied before glancing over at Rin. He looked back to me and asked, "I knew about you, but who is this?" I looked over at Rin and smiled.

"I met her in the forest getting chased by a bear. It was a miracle we got away, really. After that we just kinda stuck together." I looked at her for confirmation and she nodded. The guard sighed and smiled at us.

"Well I really hope there's a way to get you two out of here. You shouldn't be stuck here so young. Especially since it will probably be a long time…" I shook my shoulders a little at the thought, but the hurt one began to sting so I stopped.

"Will we be stuck in these cells the entire time?" I questioned, hoping it wasn't true.

"You might be lucky and get a cell together if you have good behavior and I put in a good word for you." He replied. "They need these types of cells for newcomers, and they're getting pretty full. They should agree, hopefully." I smiled and looked at Rin.

"We should make that our first goal then. At least we wouldn't have this gate in the way." I said, motioning to the bars separating us. She smiled back and nodded, though her eyes were still slightly sad. I looked back at the guard. "How long do you think that would take?" I asked him, hoping it wouldn't be too long.

"I'm not exactly sure, but it shouldn't be more than a month." I inwardly cringed at the thought of being stuck like this for a month. "But I might be able to get it faster if I bug them enough." He continued. I grinned at him.

"Would you really do that?" I asked hopefully. He nodded and gave us a small smile.

"You may even end up in the same hall as your parents; I heard there was an open cell in there. It's one of the weaker ones though, so you would be chained to an iron ball to make escape tough." I wouldn't care about being chained. As long as I could be near Rin and see my parents, that would be perfect.

"That's perfectly fine with me! What about you Rin?" I questioned as I glanced over at her. She silently nodded and squeezed my hand. I squeezed back and gave her a comforting (well, what I hope was comforting) smile. I do wonder why a guard would help us though…

"Why do you want to help us?" Rin voiced my unasked question curiously. I swear we have telepathy or something.

"It gets really boring here. I like to help out the people I feel have been wronged." He answered. Both Rin and I glanced at each other and smiled. He really was a nice guy. I've already decided that I like him. Hopefully he'll stay our guard the whole time we're in here. I turned back to Rin.

"Alright then, we'll just have to be patient for a little while. Hopefully we'll get out of jail soon, but I really have no clue if that's possible." The guard on the other side of the cell chipped in.

"Hopefully your parents do too." I nodded at that. That would really be great. "Well, I need to get back to my rounds. I'll probably come by here again later though." The guard stated. We nodded at him.

"Alright then. We'll see you later I guess." I said as he nodded and continued down the rows of cells. I looked around for a little bit and noticed that the cells next to and across from mine were unoccupied, but the one behind Rin's was. By the looks of it, whoever was in there was sleeping. I felt Rin pull on my hand so I turned back to look at her.

"I really do hope that'll happen, but so far it seems doubtful…" Rin spoke quietly. I sighed and motioned for her to move her ear closer.

"Let's just focus on getting the same cell for now. Once we're there we can work on figuring out how to escape. Maybe we could even find a way to get my parents out as well. Those iron balls he mentioned could be useful for bashing down walls." She giggled quietly.

"Yeah, maybe. Let's just hope no one heard you say that or we're never getting out of here." I laughed quietly as I agreed. She was about to say something else when a large yawn broke out of her mouth.

"Well you seem tired." I chuckled as she blushed slightly. "How long have you been awake?" Her hand twitched slightly against mine before she replied.

"I haven't been able to fall asleep since I woke up…" She admitted quietly. "I was worried about you. And kind of afraid." I lowered my eyes at her answer.

"Sorry for worrying you…" I mumbled, staring at my feet. "You need to get some sleep, go lay down." She shook her head quickly. I was about to ask why, but she interrupted me.

"No, you just woke up. I want to talk to you some more." She pouted and I sighed.

"I'm still a little tired, so let's just sleep some more. I promise I'll wake you up if I wake up before you. You can wake me up if you can't sleep. How's that?" She contemplated for a minute before agreeing.

"Fine, but I'm moving the cot over here." She stated. Her cot was on the other side of the jail cell, so she tried to move it without making much noise, but she was having a hard time with it. I sighed and shook my head.

"Its fine Rin, just leave it there." She shook her head stubbornly.

"No, I'm bringing it over there no matter what!" Loud clanging began, cutting off the end of her sentence. She quickly took advantage and moved the cot quickly before the banging stopped. It was now sitting right next to where mine was in my cell. "There!" She said smugly. I just rolled my eyes and smiled at her.

"So what do you think that banging was?" I asked. She shrugged.

"Probably someone getting mad. I don't care, I was able to move the bed quicker because of it." She stated as she got into the small cot. I smiled and rolled into my cot. I wanted to give her a hug or something like that good night, but the stupid bars were in my way. I think she noticed the annoyance on my face because she reached through the bars and grabbed my hand.

"Good night Len." I turned my head and smiled at her.

"Night Rin." We both curled up on our sides facing each other, our hands connected close to the bars. Somehow, even on the extremely uncomfortable cots, we managed to fall asleep. Now that I think of it, it was probably because we'd been sleeping in the woods for so long.

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**_A/N: Alright, so I wasn't planning to include other Vocaloids in here, but I realized that for what I have planned, I need characters for Len's parents and for Rin's parents. I think I'm going to make Len's Gakupo and Luka. Please tell me what you think of the idea. As for Rin's, I have no clue T-T I could use some help on that. Please give me suggestions! xD_**

**_Next one hopefully by *checks calender to see if it's Wednesday* hmmmm. Saturday? That's if I'm lazy, so hopefully before that. Yeah. C'ya! (Please review and help me out)_**

**_~Chika_**


	13. Chapter 12

**_A/N: Dangit! 47 minutes late... Sorry, just finished. I was kinda lazy, so it's a little late, but oh well. I'm thinking next chapter is the one that will be based off of a picture I saw xD I'll give you a link to the video on that chapter._**

**_DISCLAIMER: not in ownership._**

**_Enjoy!

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Chapter 12

~Len's POV~

The days that went by felt extremely slow. Every day just felt worse and worse. There was absolutely nothing to do, and even Rin had run out of things to talk about. We had settled for just sitting there on our beds, day after day, holding hands and spacing out. I'm not sure what she had been thinking about all that time, but I've just been thinking about getting out of here, and what we would do once we got out. Rin was looking sadder and sadder each day as well. I would try to comfort her, but I couldn't think of anything to do. The stupid bars were in the way of anything.

I let out a sigh as I squeezed her hand slightly. She looked up at me with a blank look in her eyes, and I saw slight tears there too. My eyes widened and I immediately reached my other arm through the bars and touched her cheek. She gave me a small smile and pressed her cheek into my palm, letting one tear escape. I quickly wiped it away with my thumb. This was happening more and more the longer we were in this stupid place. That nice guard had visited us every day, but it didn't help Rin at all.

Looking up, I saw our guard coming by for his regular visit. Normally I would stand up and talk to him by the cell's door, but I felt that if I left Rin now she'd break down. He gave us a large grin and waved me over. I shook my head and motioned with my head towards Rin.

"Alright, I'll just tell you from here then." He called to us, still smiling. "You're finally being moved to a combined cell." Almost immediately, I felt Rin perk up. I looked back at her face and she finally smiled. Her first true smile in weeks. I couldn't help but grin at the news as well. It had been nearly two months; much longer than we had thought it would be. I stayed calm rather than jumping up in excitement.

"Are we able to go now, or do we still have to wait a few days?" I asked, hoping we'd be moved sometime today. I got my answer when he unlocked the gate and opened it up, doing Rin's next. I looked at her and gave her hand one last squeeze before practically running out of the cell. As soon as we were out, Rin nearly knocked me over with the force of her running into me. Her face was buried in my neck and her arms wrapped around my torso, pushing on my back and squeezing me tight. I smiled and buried my face in her hair, wrapping my arms tightly around her small form.

It's funny how even though we haven't known each other for more than a few months, we were so attached to each other. It was like we'd known each other our whole lives, and couldn't stand to be separated. Almost like twins, or really close childhood friends. Or even, dare I say it, lovers…

Now that I'd thought about it, I really doubt I would be able to stand being separated from her for a long period of time. It was obvious that it was hard for her to even just be separated by bars, so maybe we really were… Well, I couldn't speak for her, but maybe I… Maybe I'm in love with her?

I lifted my face a little at the revelation and looked down at her. All I could see was the top of her head, but I couldn't help but smile at the sight of her. I leaned back down and pressed the side of my face into her head, squeezing tighter. After a few moments, I felt a small wetness growing on my neck. She was crying again. This time however, I think it was probably tears of happiness. I smiled and reached one hand up, placing it on her head.

"There, we're one step closer to getting out of here." I whispered into her hair. I felt her nod slightly, and I felt her smile against my neck.

"Yeah." She whispered back, pushing her face in a little harder before pulling back and giving me a great big smile. We (reluctantly) separated from our hug and looked at the guard, who just had a soft smile plastered on his face. We nodded to signal that we were ready to go. The guard nodded back and began leading the way while I wrapped my arm around Rin's and intertwined our fingers. She squeezed my hand and smiled up at me. I smiled back as we were led down a maze of hallways towards our new cell.

When we reached the cell, the guard stopped us.

"Okay, these cells are more fragile, as I think I've mentioned before. Therefore, you guys are going to have to wear these chains… I'm sorry but that's just the way it is." He told us, holding out the chains with iron balls attached to the end. Rin and I nodded, detaching our hands and holding them out for him to clamp on the chains. After the chains were clamped on we walked into the cell. There was a small toilet with a curtain around it in one corner. At least they had the decency to put a curtain there. The cell was no different from the ones we were in earlier, except it was larger and it had two beds, one on each side.

We wasted no time pushing the beds together, though it was quite hard due to the extra weight on our arms. Almost as soon as the beds were together, we collapsed onto them. I rolled over and gave her a tight hug, which she returned almost immediately.

"I'm glad we're finally in the same cell." I whispered to her. "Those couple months were tough weren't they? You were right there, but I couldn't hug you. I hated it." She nodded.

"Yeah… I've been feeling the exact same way." She replied. I pulled my head back and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead.

"I really missed you…" I knew we hadn't actually been apart, but I could tell she understood what I meant because she nodded.

"Yeah. Same here…" She murmured. We just laid there for some long unknown amount of time. I was just thinking; how would I know if I really did love her? I always want to be around her, I've had so many random urges to kiss her, I love being in contact with her in any way. She's just too sweet and cute to not want to be around. When I see her sad I just… It tears me apart inside. Thinking about it now, I really am in love with her. There's no getting around it. Not that I'd want too; I am perfectly fine with that.

After making that little (big) discovery, I was filled with a sense of happiness. I have no clue where it came from, but I don't really care. I really had the urge to tell her my realization as well. She seemed to be feeling the same way as me. She doesn't want to be away from me, she loves hugging me and holding my hand. We've both even had dreams of kissing each other. In fact, I've actually had a few of those by now. My face heated up at the thought of them, but I pushed the blush down. There was a chance that she loved me too.

"R-Rin?" I began. She looked up at me.

"Yeah?" She asked, her eyes somewhat droopy. She was obviously sleepy, and now that I think of it, a jail cell isn't really the best place to tell someone you love them. I sighed.

"Nevermind. Just get some sleep; you look tired." I smiled when she yawned.

"Alright. Night Len." She murmured, kissing me on the cheek. My face heated up a little as I replied.

"Night Rin." Even though we didn't really know if it was day or night. It's hard to tell when you're in a stone cell with no windows.

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**_A/N: Well, hope you liked it. Thank you for all the reviews, favorites and alerts coming in! Please keep it up xD_**

**_~Chika_**


	14. Chapter 13

******_A/N: GAAAAHHH! Sorry about the wait peoples. It's just being on vacation and having Christmas kinda kept me busy ^^; That and I got some horrible news today, so this turned kinda angsty. I'm behaving similar to Rin(I actually meant Len -.- I'm not a crying person xD) in real life now. -.- I _get_ to leave all of my friends and move to a new city. Yaaaaaay. I told my friend that "life sucks" and she looked at me like I was crazy and commented on how I never say stuff like that. It's true, I'm usually very optimistic, this just sucks butt._**

**_Sorry about my rant. I'll cut it off there. The sad experience gave me inspiration for a oneshot I might write to add to my collection though ^^ I dunno, _maybe_ something good could come of this. If any of you live in Bellingham or Everett, please tell me. I'll be your friend when I get there xD_**

**_DISCLAIMER:..._**

**_Yeah. Here's the chapter. I think it sucks but whatever._**

**_EDIT: lol, I realized while I was rereading this that I made a big mistake up there. Meant to say Len, not Rin xD_**

**_Oh, and Happy Birthday Len and Rin! xD_**

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Chapter 13

~Len's POV~

The next day was rather normal. We woke up, got food handed to us through the bars a few times throughout the day, were bored, and went back to sleep. About a week passed like that, and there were absolutely no noteworthy events. Rin and I had resorted to making up games to try to keep us entertained. At the moment we were sitting on the floor next to her bed playing one of those games.

"What does that one look like?" I heard Rin ask as she pointed at a dark blob on the stone floor. It was shaped sort of funny, like a big oval with a small circle on top and a few blobby lines poking out. I stared at it for a moment, tilting my head to try and figure it out.

"A… A dog maybe?" I told her uncertainly. She nodded and smiled slightly.

"That's what I thought too." She mumbled as she searched for another blob that we hadn't already looked at. I joined her in the silent searching for a little while, but it was so boring. I threw my hands into the air and let out a loud, somewhat angry grumble.

"There's got to be _something_ else to do here!" I exclaimed, bringing my hands back to my face and pulling on it. Rin just sighed and stared off into nothingness. This happens sometimes where she just starts to think a lot, and before I know it, small tears begin to leak out of her eyes. I just observed her face. Her eyes were blank, her face was neutral, and her shoulders were slumped with her arms hanging down limply. I sighed. She was probably going to start crying again soon.

I absolutely hate it when she cries! There's nothing I can do, and I can't really comfort her because I don't know exactly what she's crying about. All I can do is just sit with her, hold her hand, hug her. Something like that. That's all I can do and it makes me feel horrible.

I looked back at Rin and saw that she still had the blank look, but she looked slightly sadder. I reached over and took her hand, waiting for the inevitable breakdown that was about to come. She looked up at me and smiled as the tears began to fall. She leaned back against the bed and covered her face with the hand I wasn't holding, probably trying to hide the tears as best she could.

To be honest, I almost wanted to cry at the sight of her, but I held it in. I knew that it would just make her crying worse, so I had to be tough. No crying. I sighed and pulled her into my lap by her shoulders. She seemed somewhat surprised, but she leaned back nonetheless and continued crying quietly. I silently wrapped my arms around her shoulders and leaned my head on her right shoulder.

"It'll be alright, don't worry." I mumbled, hoping it would help her somewhat. She just seemed to cry harder at that. Her shoulders were shaking and I could hear her quiet sobs. We just sat like that for probably an hour until her cries quieted completely. She seemed really tired, which doesn't surprise me; she's always tired after one of these little episodes.

"Thank you, Len." She mumbled before she dozed off. She always said that too. I don't know what she has to thank me for, I can't think of anything I did that helped. I guess she's just happy that I'm there, unlike before in the separate cells.

"You're welcome." I whispered as I picked her up, careful not to wake her up, and set her on her bed. I walked around to the other side and lay down on my bed, reaching over and holding her hand. I really hope that we'll be able to get out of here soon; there was no telling how long we could last in here. It was getting harder and harder each day, and Rin had begun breaking down more and more. Her little breakdowns were also getting worse by the day.

I felt a slight wetness on my face and realized that I was crying. Only a little, but I was. I quickly reached up and wiped the tears away, though the chains on my wrist scratched up my face a little bit. Somehow, even with my melancholy mood and painful stinging on my face, I managed to fall asleep.

The next day was no better, neither was the one after that, or after that. Yet another week had passed before I knew it and Rin's breakdowns now involved full out sobbing, and squeezing my arm tightly. I've tried to get her to tell me what she's thinking about many times, but she just won't tell me.

It just hurts so much to see her like that! I clenched my fist at the thought. She's in pain and there's nothing I can do, but I just love her too much to not do anything. It hurts… I think that I may be beginning to feel the same kind of pain she is. It's becoming very hard not to burst into tears when I think about things like this.

Rin was in one of her breakdowns again, and her arms were wrapped tightly around my torso. She was sobbing loudly into my shoulder as I held her head in one hand, my other wrapped around her waist. My back was leaning against Rin's bed, which we were sitting on the floor next to. I turned my head and buried my face in the hair on the side of her head, trying as hard as I could not to burst out in tears. It would just make her cry harder, and I don't want to make her worry any more.

I squeezed her a little tighter and let out a shaky breath. I couldn't stop a few tears from escaping this time, but I wasn't going to let her know that I was crying as well. It's getting harder and harder to not cry… I don't know what I'm going to do when I finally break down as well. I shook a little and choked back a sob, trying as hard as I possibly could. It was very hard, that's for sure.

It had probably been at least an hour, and her cries weren't lightening up at all. I was losing my will to stay quiet, and countless tears were escaping my eyes. She probably felt them by now, so I don't know why I was still trying to hide it. I guess I just figured that if she heard me it would get worse. I needed her to stop crying.

"P-please Rin…" I whispered in shaky breaths. "P-please stop crying…" She squeezed me a little tighter and just cried harder. I just couldn't help her… I let out a choked sob, then another one right afterward. It was getting extremely hard to stay quiet, and I knew that she could tell I was crying as well. That probably just made it worse.

I knew that if I began to sob like she was, she probably wouldn't be able to stop, but it was just so tough not to. I needed to find a way to distract myself, or her, so it wouldn't happen. Rin's tears had stopped, but she was still sobbing uncontrollably. She had probably just run out of tears. Yet again, the thought made me choke up. I inwardly glared at myself and told myself to shut up. It wasn't working.

I sighed and pulled my face back a little. I knew that if she looked up she would see my tear-streaked face, but she already knew I was crying, so it didn't matter. She did look up at me and she tried to smile, but she couldn't. Her whole body was shaking and her sobs had stopped, but I knew it was just a matter of time before they started up again.

I knew that when they started up again, I wouldn't be able to control my own cries. I needed to prevent her from beginning to cry again, or who knows how long this would last. I stared into her eyes, trying to figure out what I could do. Hugging wouldn't make a difference, I was already doing that. Maybe if I… Maybe if I kissed her, she would be too surprised to keep crying?

Remembering the urge that I'd had the day we were caught caused me to blush slightly, though she probably couldn't tell; both our faces were red from the crying. I smiled slightly and gave me a small smile back, beginning to sniffle again. Oh no. No more crying! Without thinking any further, I leaned in and pressed my lips to hers.

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**_A/N: Sorry about leaving it there, but I can't force myself to write more. I'm in a bad mood -.- Please review, those put me in a good mood. (Yes, I'm playing the sympathy card xD)_**

**_~Chika_**


	15. Chapter 14

**_A/N: Eh, it's a little later than I'd hoped, but oh well. I figured I'd switch it up and I did the guard's pov of what's happened so far, since people seem to like him. I think he's cool xD_**

**_MasterVoiceMixer: Haha, thanks for the support ^^ I'm dealing with it better now. I was actually able to write, so there's the proof :D_**

**_DISCLAIMER: SHNASHNASHNA_**

**_Enjoy! And HAPPY NEW YEAR!_**

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Chapter 14

~Guard's POV~

I walked through the stone halls of the jail yet again. The patrols were practically neverending, and made me so bored that I just didn't want to come to work at all most days. Today I was slightly more interested though, seeing as I'd heard that a young fugitive was caught, along with some unexpected company. I hoped sincerely that it wasn't the little boy that the couple in my old patrol area was talking about. They were nice people, and after they told me their story, I just felt so bad for the poor kid. I had been told that he was a nice kid, blonde hair, blue eyes. And if he ever was to be brought in, that they would like to know.

With that memory in my head, I headed down the hall towards the two newly occupied cells. I stopped next to the first of them and saw a small, blonde haired girl with a very dirty bow on the top of her head curled up on the cot, sleeping. I glanced in the next cell to see a similar boy curled up on his own cot. The word was that they were brought in unconscious, so I assumed that they hadn't woken up yet. I'd talk to them once they woke up.

I continued down the hall of empty cells, with one last glance at the newcomers before I turned the corner.

The next day, I'd come back to find the young girl awake. She was sitting up on the cot, looking around frantically with small tears in her eyes. The poor thing… I figured that I should try to calm her down a little before she panics. I walked up to her cell door and tapped on the bars quietly. Her head snapped towards me and she quickly wiped her eyes dry.

"Hello." I started, not exactly sure what to say to her.

"Hello." She mumbled back, looking at me with slight curiosity. She sat there and contemplated for a minute before adding, "Um.. How long have I been in here?" She looked around a little more before her eyes widened in slight fear. "And where is Len? He didn't die did he? !" She ran up to me and grabbed the bars, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. I gave her a small smile.

"You've been in here for about a day now. And don't worry about the boy you were with, he's in the cell next to you." I pointed at the boy who was stretched out on the cot, still asleep. She let out a huge sigh of relief when she looked over and saw that he appeared fine. She looked back at me for a second and thanked me, before running to the bars between their cells and looking at the boy.

"Len, Len?" She began calling his name, hoping to wake him up.

"Calling probably won't help with the state he's in. I believe he was drugged, but he should wake up on his own within a day or two." I informed her, so she wouldn't run her voice out calling for him. She looked up at me and nodded, settling for just looking through the bars. "I'm going to go finish my rounds." I called to her as I began walking down the hallway. I saw her nod her head in acknowledgement and continued on my way.

The boy definitely appeared to be the one mentioned to me before, but I had no clue who the girl was.

I continued my rounds for the rest of the day, and every time I would pass by the two blondes' cells, the boy would be passed out, and the girl would be sitting there nervously. It appeared that she couldn't sleep, and wouldn't be able to for a while. Hopefully the boy, Len I think it was, would wake up soon and manage to calm her down.

The next day was nearly the same, except towards the end of my shift. I walked down the hall towards their cells like always, but rather than being asleep, the boy was talking to the girl. I heard the girl say something about something being fine when I headed up to the cell door.

"It seems our little runaway has finally woken up." I called out in greeting, though it might not have actually been a good greeting, now that I think of it. The boy looked up at me and I smiled at him. He seemed slightly surprised and confused. I guess he thought that I was probably one of those mean guards, like some of my coworkers are.

"Um. Who are you?" He questioned me. I explained who I was and mentioned how I knew about him because of his parents. At the mention of his parents, his and the girl's eyes widened considerably. Well, I guess they would be curious about how his parents were, I mean, who wouldn't be? In their situation anyway. I explained how I knew his parent's and that they might not be able to see them because of the horrible condition the jail was in. I could tell that they were very disappointed, but there was nothing I could do about it.

He explained to me who the girl, Rin, was, as well as how they'd met. I could tell that they definitely cared very much about each other from the little glances they'd throw at each other occasionally. It really was too bad that they had been caught. I thought about any way that I could help them, and realized that it may be possible to at least get them a cell together, rather than separate ones. I mentioned this possibility and they immediately perked up. We talked for a little bit, but I had to get back to finishing my rounds.

Every day after that, I'd talk to them for a little bit during my rounds. It was obvious that this was hard on them, and getting them a combined cell was harder than I'd originally thought it'd be. They'd at least been able to reach through the bars and reach each other. I'd also noticed that the girl had pulled her bed right next to the bars next to his. It was so obvious that they wanted a cell together, so I was happy when I'd finally managed to get one for them about two months later.

I'd walked up to their cells, to see the girl nearly crying and the boy trying to comfort her through the bars. I'm sure the news I had would cheer them up though. I motioned for them to come over, but the boy shook his head and motioned to the crying girl, probably saying that he couldn't leave her for the time being.

"Alright, I'll just tell you from here then." I called to him as I continued to smile because of the good news I had. "You're finally being moved to a combined cell." It was almost funny how fast they perked up. They both actually smiled, something that'd hadn't happened for a while. The boy looked up at me.

"Are we able to go now, or do we still have to wait a few days?" He asked with a hopeful look in his eyes. I just unlocked their doors in response. I knew I wouldn't have to worry about them hurting me, unlike most of the prisoners here. They were just poor kids, so there was no need to cuff them before moving them. I stepped to the side as they all but ran out of the cells and embraced each other. From the looks of them, it was obvious that being separated was hard.

Not to brag or anything, but I've always been a very perceptive person. It was easy to see that they were going to stay with each other no matter what. Nothing was ever going to separate them willingly. The boy, Len, raised his head and looked at the girl with a contemplating look on his face. It looked like he may have realized something surprising or important, though I wasn't really sure what it could be. Maybe the reality of the situation just hit?

I couldn't help but smile at them as they slowly pulled apart. I'm definitely glad to have been able to help them, even if just for this little thing. I led them towards the new cell and pulled out the chains that they'd be forced to wear once inside. I stopped in front of the cell and turned around. They detached their hands, rather reluctantly, and I snapped the chains on.

The door was opened, and they immediately pushed the beds together once they were inside. I smiled to myself and headed back to my own area for my rounds.

About a week or so later, I'd managed to get transferred so I was yet again patrolling the hallway of the two blondes. Each day, they'd just sit there and play little made up games, though I could tell that they were being affected by the jail yet again. Eventually, the girl had begun crying again, though at least the boy could comfort her better.

I could tell that she was getting worse each day, and her fits were getting longer and louder. Len tried his best to comfort her, but there just wasn't much he could do, and I could tell it was hurting him. Why couldn't the people in charge realize that it was wrong to put two young kids like these in here, especially for so long? They were losing a good chunk of their lives, and it was slowly torturing them.

Days later, the boy was practically breaking down as well, no matter how hard he tried not to. I'd even seen him silently sobbing to himself after she'd fall asleep. He would cry, but he wouldn't let her know. Today, Rin was sobbing louder than ever, and it was lasting a lot longer too. I could tell that he wouldn't be able to last much longer. I had passed at least three times, and usually the fits didn't last that long, so it was definitely bad today.

There was a small break in her crying as they looked at each other. I guess it shouldn't really have surprised me, seeing as they were really close, but I was still surprised somewhat. Rin was about to start crying again, and it was obvious that Len wouldn't have been able to hold it back if she did. So to prevent her from crying again, he just leaned forward and kissed her. There was no doubt that she was surprised. I just smiled sadly to myself and continued my patrol. They really shouldn't be subjected to this kind of torture so young.

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**_A/N: So yeah, basically just a recap in the guard's pov. It's all I could really do at the moment, plus I liked the idea of writing it for some reason. Next chapter might be a little later since I'm starting school up again on Monday T-T _****_Also, when I finally finish this, I'm thinking about doing a redone, better version. What do you think?_**

**_Also, for Rin's parents I'm thinking Neru, and either Akaito or Mikuo. Or someone else. But Neru for sure! I don't like her xD Please tell me what you think. Akaito? Mikuo? Someone else? I don't care. Just give me an idea, I have a feeling it's just a few chapters 'till I have to put them in._**

**_~Chika_**


	16. Chapter 15

**_A/N: I am so sorry you guys! The whole moving thing just kind of killed my writing mood. But I finally got over it and managed to finish this chapter. The whole last chapter thing was me feeling guilty and writing a filler -.- So um, yeah. I didn't like it lol. Finally got around to moving on with the story now, so please enjoy!_**

**_EDIT: Thank you to YiPrincess for finding a typo ^^ Anyone sees one, just tell me._**

**_DISCLAIMER: no. Just... no._**

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Chapter 15

~Len's POV~

I pulled back and slowly opened my eyes. My mind felt clearer, and I was able to think without the haze of sadness somehow. I looked at Rin to gauge her reaction. She looked… Shocked. That's for sure. Her eyes were wide open as she stared up at me, tears slowly fading away. I don't know whether to take that as a good sign or not, but at least she wasn't crying anymore. There were still a few tears on her cheeks though…

My hand reached up automatically and cupped her cheek, thumb wiping the tears away. Softly smiling, I continued to stroke her cheek softly and she gave me a small smile of her own.

"It _will_ be okay," I told her firmly. "I promise." She gave a small nod and we continued to stare at each other for I don't know how long. But it was a long time.

Eventually I stood up, pulling her up by the hand, and went to lie on one side of the pushed-together cots. It was extremely obvious that she was tired, and she should be able to sleep now that she's calmed down somewhat. My face heated up slightly, now that I realized I had actually gone through with it. Well… It worked right? And she didn't push me away… So it should be fine.

I looked over at Rin, who had snuggled into her small, flimsy pillow. She had fallen asleep pretty fast, unlike me. I was very awake now, but of course there was nothing to do in this barren place. I settled for pulling Rin closer to me and hugging her tightly. As long as she's here, everything should be fine. Everything should be fine… I continued to think that phrase over and over again until I managed to fall asleep a while later.

Upon waking up slowly the next day, or later that day, I couldn't be sure; I heard a loud yawning sound next to me. My head turned itself to see Rin curled up on my right side like a kitten. Her back was pressed to my right arm and she was beginning to stretch slightly. I yawned as well and stretched my arms. These cots were hard as a rock; not nice to sleep on.

I laid back down on the rock we call a bed and closed my eyes again. Sleeping wasn't an option, but sometimes it's nice to just lie down. And I will admit that these rock-cots are better than the stone cold ground.

"H-hey… Um…" There was a small tug on the elbow of my sleeve. I glanced down as Rin buried her face into my shoulder, almost as though she were embarrassed. I gave my shoulder a slight twitch, to indicate that I was listening. She turned her face so she could look straight at me and moved slightly closer. I guess she's cold? "Uh.. Thank you.." Trailing off, she looked up at me and smiled softly. Huh?

"What for?" I asked her, slightly confused. Who wouldn't be if someone randomly thanked you? Her face reddened slightly and she turned her face back toward my shoulder. She began giggling nervously as she replied. Well this is new. Is she finally beginning to feel better?

"-ways helping me out.." Oops, I wasn't listening. Well, I guess she means when she's crying? "And…" She had an even longer pause here and her face was redder, which leads me to believe she's embarrassed. About what? "Thanks for calming me down earlier." She pressed her face deeper into my shoulder. Oh-That. I felt my face flare up as well. "I don't know how long I'd have kept crying if you hadn't…" She trailed off yet again, slowly reaching to hug my arm. "So thank you." Well… I have nothing to say to that. What do I say? 'You're welcome?' That just doesn't seem right, but I couldn't think of anything else.

"U-ummm… You're welcome. I guess," I stuttered out in embarrassment. At least she wasn't mad at me, right? It just got super awkward though… I mentally shrugged and reached over with the arm she wasn't holding and hugged her. There was a quiet, mouse-like squeak from the girl snuggled against my shoulder, but she let my arm go and hugged me back slowly, like she were confused. I don't blame her. "I uh, figured it would make it less awkward." Rin giggled at my excuse.

"Did it work?"

"No, not at all. It made it worse." I replied bluntly. She just giggled quietly and hugged me tighter.

"Well I don't mind." She stated as she grinned into my shirt. I smiled and laughed quietly to myself. It seems that things were definitely getting better, even if it's just a little. At least she could laugh-well, giggle-now, and that made me feel a whole lot better. We laid there in silence for a little while-NOT awkward amazingly-, though Rin broke it eventually.

"Hey, Len?" I could sense a slight hesitation in her voice. I pushed my face into her hair softly and mumbled a quiet... thing that sounded somewhat like a yes. "If we would have met in different, more normal circumstances, would you have come over and talked to me?" She questioned quietly. That's an interesting question… Hm… No, I'd be too embarrassed to…

"No, I probably wouldn't have." I suddenly felt her pull out of my embrace sharply, and when I looked at her face, it showed hurt. Oh crap! She took it the wrong way! "N-no! Not like that!" I exclaimed, "I would have been too embarrassed to approach you! That's all…" I explained hurriedly, lowering my gaze to the pillow and blushing slightly. I heard some quiet muffled sounds coming from Rin's direction, accompanied by shaking. Turning my head to look at her, I noticed something.

She was laughing. Not just quiet giggling or something like that- full on laughing. But she was trying to be quiet, so it looked really funny. I couldn't help but grin at that. She could actually laugh full out now! At the revelation, I couldn't help but break out into laughter myself. Sure she was laughing at me, but I didn't mind. She was laughing, and that just made me really happy.

Even like, ten minutes later, we were still laughing quite hard. It was just what we needed though, I mean, finally we're beginning to cheer up. I guess it's like how everything is all calm after a large storm or something. Though then again everything is supposed to be calm before a storm, and that wasn't really the case. I guess we're just backwards? I dunno, but still. It's finally getting better. And just when I thought it would be hard for them to get any better-without us actually getting out of this horrid place- it did.

That guard that was always talking to us, he came back over just as our bouts of laughter were dying down. The two of us sat up and looked at him, wiping the tears of happiness from our eyes.

"It's good to see you guys finally back to good spirits!" He called to us through the bars. We just nodded and smiled happily at him. "Well, I've got some good news." At that Rin and I immediately perked up. Good news would definitely be welcome at the moment. "It's about your parents Len." My eyes widened and I jumped up, running towards the part of the cell he was standing at, Rin on my heels.

"What is it? Where are they? Can I see them?" I shot out multiple questions in rapid fire mode, with Rin just giggling from behind. My hands were gripping the bars tightly and I was staring at him intensely. The guard held up his hands and laughed.

"Hah, you're sure hyper aren't you?" He questioned. I glared at him and he just laughed some more. "Yeah, you can see them, they're being moved into that cell," He paused and pointed and the empty cell next to ours, the one on the right, "Tomorrow. They can't wait to see you either." My eyes trailed to the empty cell and my face grew into a giant grin.

My parents. I'd be able to see them again! Tomorrow!

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**_A/N: Oh, and about Rin's parents. People are seeming to say Mikuo, but I've also had the suggestion for Taito, and I believe he would actually fit the role well. So what do you think? Mikuo or Taito? Oh, and in case anyone forgot cause of that horribly long break, the other one was gonna be Neru._**

**_Please tell me what you think. And yet again, I'm really really sorry about that!_**

**_~Chika_**


	17. Chapter 16

**_A/N: Yaaay! I'm starting to get a better pace again! Man, I find it weird that now I'm thinking more about that oneshot I wrote yesterday than this story. And that one's done! I may have to do something similar to that, but probably with a happier ending ^^; And I'm starting to thing maybe I should have put it in the oneshot collection lol. Probably(maybe) would get more reviews there, but oh well._**

**_Hope you like this chapter!_**

**_DISCLAIMER: Not doing these after this chapter. You people get it. (Hah, I forgot it last chapter.)_**

**_Enjoy~_**

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Chapter 16

~Len's POV~

It turns out that the tomorrow I'd be seeing my parents was farther away than I'd expected. I thought it was evening when that guard gave us the news, but it was actually early in the morning. I sighed in disappointment and kicked a small pebble against the wall, having it bounce back and land by my foot again.

"So… Um…" I turned my head at the sound of Rin's voice. "Your parents, what are they like exactly? I want to know a little about them before I meet them if you don't mind." She stated shyly. I smiled and sat next to her on the cot.

"Of course I don't mind. Anything specific you would want to know?" I asked her, not really sure what to start out with. She just looked at me and shrugged.

"Well, what are their personalities like?" She asked after a few moments of silence. I leaned back and thought for a little bit. How do I explain them? They're definitely an odd pair, that's for sure. Well, I guess I'll start with my mom then.

"My mother, Luka, is really nice. She has this really long pink hair." I saw confusion etch itself onto her face. "Yeah, I don't really understand either, but it's pink. She's a good cook, though she wants to have tuna every night and me and my dad have a hard time convincing her not too." I snickered to myself, remembering all the times we'd argue about dinner.

"I remember you mentioning your mother had an obsession for tuna!" She exclaimed, laughing. "Like me and oranges and you and bananas. And didn't your father like eggplants?" Wow, she has a pretty good memory. I hardly remember mentioning those things.

"Exactly." I smiled at her, "My mom is a very nice person, though if you get on her bad side…" I trailed off, remembering the many times me and my father had gotten a fish to the head. "You probably don't want to know." I chuckled. She pouted and tugged on the prison shirt I was wearing.

"Tell me!" Ah… She looked so cute I just couldn't resist. I turned and gave her a big hug, trying not to squeak happily into her hair. Then I'd just be girly. She jumped and hugged me back nonetheless. I pulled back quickly and coughed to myself in embarrassment.

"Ah, anyway." I mumbled as I got my original train of thought back, "She tends to hit people with things. Usually a fish, tuna fish, if we have one in the house somewhere. Which we almost always did." Rin began to giggle, probably at the thought of me getting a fish to the face. "So yeah, she's basically the boss of the house."

"Already sounds like a pretty interesting family." Rin stated as she laughed. I laughed with her.

"Yeah it's pretty odd. Wait until you hear about my dad!" I exclaimed.

"Well go on, tell me." She practically demanded through her giggles. I leaned back on the bed and closed my eyes, smiling.

"Well, you're not going to believe this, but he has really long purple hair." I opened one eye to gauge her reaction and was surprised to see that there wasn't actually a large reaction.

"That almost doesn't surprise me, seeing as your mom had pink hair." She stated, smiling to herself. "I already can't wait to meet them!" She squeaked excitedly.

"Haha. Well, just to warn you, my father is very…er…energetic would be the best way to put it. He seems slightly crazy at times." I rubbed the back of my head and smiled sheepishly. "So try not to be creeped out by him. He's actually a cool guy once you know him."

"I trust you. I'm sure I'll like him just fine." She smiled and leaned back on the bed as well. "Tomorrow will come faster if we get some sleep." She stated, "Why don't we go to bed?" I nodded and smiled at her.

"That's a good idea. Not sure if I'll be able to sleep though, I'm pretty excited now." I smiled to myself. I'm finally going to get to see them again! So there's one good thing to come out of this.

"I would be worried if you weren't excited goofball." Rin laughed as she lightly hit my arm, "The way you've been talking about them, they seem like really cool people. I'm excited too." We turned to lay on the cots in the proper direction and I reached out to grab her hand.

"Maybe everything will turn out alright." I stated smiling. "Just maybe." I squeezed her hand slightly and closed my eyes. I don't know how I managed it, but I was asleep within seconds. I guess I must have been tired, but I don't know for sure.

When I woke up later, I figured that I must not have slept through the night. Our sleeping pattern has probably gotten way off of the normal due to not being able to tell the time of day. Looking around, I noticed that my parents were not in the cell next to me, Rin was still asleep, and that guard was nowhere to be seen.

I wasn't really tired anymore, so I wouldn't be able to fall asleep again. Laying here like a teddy bear was probably my best bet, until Rin woke up anyway. I say like a teddy bear, because Rin was currently curled up and hugging me tight, as if I were one. I don't mind, she's warm.

I smiled to myself and rolled to face her, hugging her back. Ah, our faces are really close now… I closed my eyes to reduce the temptation. Just because she'd let me kiss her once, doesn't mean I can just go do it whenever I want. Even if I really wanted to…

I shook my head and rested my forehead on hers. That one will have to be enough for now. I sighed and tried to fall asleep, but it wasn't working. I settled for just lying there and hugging Rin tightly.

She woke up a little while later and smiled at me when she saw I was right there. She didn't seem to mind our faces being that close, so I didn't bother to move; I was comfortable. Neither of us spoke, we just lay there comfortably. It was nice, that she was smiling. I had really missed it. I moved my hand to rest on her cheek as we stared at each other.

I don't know how long we had laid there, smiling and staring at each other. The only thing I'm sure of is that it had to have been a long time.

"Hey kid!" I heard from farther down the hall. They were probably around a corner since I couldn't see the source of the voice, though I still knew who it was. "You ready to see your parents?" My eyes widened and I'm sure my face lit up even further.

"Well, let's go!" Rin exclaimed, smiling at me. I nodded frantically and all but jumped out of the bed.

"C'mon!" I shouted excitedly, grabbing Rin's hand and running to the bars.

Right there, around the corner. I saw pink and purple heads approaching our cell.

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**_A/N: This is going rather slow isn't it? I hope to pick up the pace within a few chapters for those wanting it to go faster ^^_**

**_Please review~!_**

**_~Chika_**


	18. Chapter 17

**_A/N: Snow day! I figured I'd try to finish this chapter up before college, and I managed to! It was written fast, so there's probably typos... Please point them out to me if you see them. And again, I apologize for the wait... Schools getting busy again, so updates won't be as fast as they were before the break, but I WILL finish this. Don't worry ^^_**

**_Enjoy~_**

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Chapter 17

"Mom! Dad!" I shouted as soon as I saw the tips of their hair show up around the corner. It seemed like forever before their faces came into view around the corner. They both looked surprised; I doubted the guard told them they were being moved next to me.

"Len!" They both shouted in surprise when they spotted me waving. They grinned and waved their chained hands back as they stepped into the adjacent cell. I ran to where they were, dragging Rin with me.

"How are you guys? Are you okay?" I asked them quickly, holding onto the bars tightly. They approached the bars and smiled at me.

"Don't worry, we're fine. You're the one we're worried about." My mom replied as she smiled softly. I just laughed out of sheer joy. They were fine! I dropped Rin's arm and reached through the bars in an attempt to hug her. It kind of worked, but not really.

"I'm okay." I told them. It's true, I felt fine. Being trapped in jail was still wearing on me though. "How have you guys been dealing with this?" They didn't look like they had broken down at all or anything like that. I wondered how they managed it.

"We just went with it. Nothing we could do would change it." My dad responded, "It's nice to see you again, but we didn't really want it like this." He stated. It made sense, they didn't want me caught after all.

"I know, but at least I can see you again!" I shouted, attempting to hug him as well. "I missed you guys…" I muttered against the bars. Little pats were felt as they reached through the bars and patted my head.

"We missed you too." Mom smiled at me, "So who's this?" She asked, motioning towards Rin. I completely forgot to introduce her! It was probably kinda awkward just standing there like that. I turned towards her and grabbed one of her hands.

"Uh, sorry about that." I whispered to her before speaking up, "This is Rin. I met her when she was running from a bear." Their eyes widened.

"You had to outrun a bear?" My father asked in surprise, "How did you manage that?" I glanced at Rin and we both shrugged.

"I don't know, luck I guess. Her horse ran off, so I pulled her onto mine and took off." My mom laughed at that and nudged Dad's arm.

"Well look at that, our son's a hero!" I felt my face heat up and I shook my head quickly while Rin just giggled.

"N-no I'm not! I just ran, that's all…" I trailed off, rubbing the back of my head in embarrassment as I glanced at Rin. She just smiled and squeezed my hand.

"You still saved me." I guess she's right about that, but it doesn't make me a hero. Now if I'd fought off the bear, _then_ I'd feel like a hero. "I'm very grateful for it, so thank you again…" She mumbled as she reached up and hugged me. My face just heated up more, especially when my father spoke up.

"Well, well, well. You two sure are close," he smirked as Rin jumped back from me, stuttering nonsense. Mom began to giggle as she slapped Dad lightly on the arm.

"Oh Gakupo, don't tease them," she lifted her hand to her face as she giggled some more. She looked up and smiled at us, "So when did this happen? When did you run into each other?" I looked over to Rin's blushing face and shrugged slightly.

"It was just a week or two, maybe a little more, after I left." I explained to them, "We've been traveling together pretty much the whole time."

"Well it's good to have a friend with you. It would be really boring by yourself," my mom told us, smiling. I shyly reached out and grabbed Rin's hand, pulling her closer.

"It is nice to have a friend." I stated, smiling warmly at her. Her face reddened even more in response and I chuckled.

I spent a long time talking to and catching up with my parents. I even managed to get Rin to start talking to them and they seem to like each other, so that's a good thing. It was nice, actually having fun. I'd almost forgotten what it was like talking to my parents, but of course it had to come to an end.

Rin let out a giant yawn in the middle of what she was saying and I chuckled.

"You're getting tired huh?" I smiled at her, putting my arm around her shoulders, "We should probably get some sleep then, c'mon," I told her, slowly leading her towards our beds. She laughed and leaned her head on my shoulder.

"I guess so…" She muttered, "It was nice to meet you!" She exclaimed towards my parents before lying down on the bed and looking up to me, "Are you going to sleep yet?" I wasn't quite as tired as her, so I decided I'd talk to my parents a little more first.

"Nah, I will soon though. I just want to talk to them a little more." She nodded and smiled at me.

"Alright, goodnight then!" I reached down and ruffled her hair. What? It felt soft.

"Night." I told her before heading back over to my parents. Looking back, I realized that Rin was already asleep. She had always been able to fall asleep so fast. I wonder how she does it.

"You seem to be pretty attached to her." My mother commented when she saw me glance back. A sheepish grin worked its way onto my face as I scratched the back of my head.

"Well, she's the only person I've been around all this time…" Trailing off, I glanced back to her again, "Of course I'd become attached. She's really nice after all." My parents both nodded.

"She is a good girl." My father spoke up, then gave me a huge thumbs up, "I approve!" I felt the heat rise to my face. What exactly did he approve of?

"I agree. Go for it Len!" My mom encouraged as she reached through the bars and ruffled my head. My blush grew and I looked at the ground.

"W-what are y-you guys talking about?" I stuttered, pretty sure I already knew.

"Oh, don't play dumb. We can tell you like her." My dad answered, winking, "Soooo…" He trailed off, a strange look on his face. "Have you kissed her yet?" He grinned. I immediately felt an even greater explosion of heat hit my face as I remembered. My mom reached over and smacked him upside the head.

"Oh, don't go prying. Let them be." She scolded him. Thank you mom! "We're rooting for you Len! I don't think you have to worry though. She seems pretty attached to you as well." I looked over and saw her reaching for the area I would usually sleep in. A small smile grew of my face.

"I'm kind of tired. I'm going to go sleep now." They both reached through the bars in an attempt to hug me. I did the same and gave them a small wave as I went and curled up on the cot. Almost immediately, Rin's arms were around me. I smiled to myself and hugged Rin back.

Small giggle/laugh/chuckle things could be heard from the other cell and I felt my face warm up yet again. My parents probably thought we were adorable. At the thought, I looked down at Rin. She's adorable. I gave her a small peck on the forehead before closing my eyes. My parents just had to chuckle again, causing the blush to come back up. I blush way too much for a boy… That was my last thought as I fell asleep for the night.

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**_A/N: As for the Rin's parent's thing. It appears most people are voting for Mikuo. Still not final, but that's what it looks like. Hopefully I'll be able to update faster next time, but no promises. Now to go study for the Trig exam I have in about an hour -.-_**

**_EDIT (03.09.2011): I went back and counted all the review votes, only two realize it's a 3 way tie between Akaito, Taito and Mikuo. There's a poll up on my profile for this, and I'm going to use the results from that, so please vote!_**

**_Until next time~_**

**_~Chika_**


	19. Chapter 18

**_A/N: Here's the next chapter, probably longest one yet. Rin's parents come in next chapter, and I still don't know! _**

**_IMPORTANT: I went back and counted all the review votes, only two realize it's a 3 way tie between Akaito, Taito and Mikuo. There's a poll up on my profile for this, and I'm going to use the results from that, so please vote!_**

**_~Enjoy

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_**

Chapter 18

About a week had passed since my parents were moved to the cell next to ours. We had pretty much run out of things to talk about and that nice guard seems to have been moved somewhere else. Haven't seen him lately anyway.

It was nice being able to talk to my parents again after so long, but I still wished we would be able to get out soon. By the looks of it, that wasn't happening. I had even begun to consider plans of breaking out. The walls were supposedly weak, right? Bash them down with the lead balls on the ends of the chains attached to our arms. The only problem with that plan was that it would make too much noise, and there could just be another cell on the other side.

Rin wasn't as cheery as a week ago, and I knew that it was beginning to get to her again. Just after things get nice again, they always seem to turn worse… Oh well, we _will_ find a way out! I'll make sure of it. Maybe we could get my parents out with us, though that was doubtful.

I was beginning to fear that Rin would start breaking down again. I desperately hoped that wouldn't happen because one, I hate seeing her sad. And two, if I had to calm her down again like I did before I'd never hear the end of it from my parents… No matter how bad I wanted to do that again (not the break down, what I did to calm her down), I didn't want to in front of Mom and Dad. That'd just be embarrassing.

There was one thing I never thought of though. When the subject came up about another week later, I was horrified at first. After a little thinking though, it sounded like a good idea to me.

Around that time, a guard had approached us and said that Rin's parents wished to take her out of jail, and they would be here within the week. We were extremely shocked. First because we had totally forgotten about them, second because they hadn't come sooner, and third… Rin might have to go and leave me here alone…

At first, that had sounded absolutely horrible to me. Thinking for a little while however, I realized that this could be her opportunity to get out of here and escape the sadness and breakdowns. It could actually be a good thing, even though I may not see her again.

It could still work out though… Maybe when I finally get out, I could seek her out and we could escape her parents. She could come live with me, like we'd planned. In the meantime though, being stuck in a jail cell like this _alone_ would be horrible. There could be a chance I could join Mom and Dad in their cell, but it was unlikely. The new guard patrolling the area wasn't very nice. He looked upon us all as scum beneath his shoes. It was annoying really.

Back to the whole Rin's parent's thing. Overall, it would be a good thing. She would be safe out there; I wouldn't have to worry about her breaking down. She would probably be happier too, even though her parents aren't nice. At least she wouldn't be stuck in a dirty, grimy jail cell.

"But Len, you'll be stuck here!" Was always her response when I told her it was a good thing and she should be happy. I guess she really did worry about me. Maybe even as much as I worry about her, though I believe that would be hard to top. We talked about it for a while before she came up with what I believed to be a brilliant, but risky idea.

The clothes we wore as people in the jail were the same for everybody. We all wore the same outfits. Rin and I looked extremely similar to each other, main differences being gender and hair styles. Our hair was even the same length.

"Why don't we try switching?" At first I believed it was a ridiculous idea. Why would I go and make her stay here? What she said next however, was a good idea. "You just go to my house with them, gather some things from my room and take off. You can tell them they got the wrong one, that you're a guy. Then you go hide in the forest, and they'll have to come get me!"

My eyes had widened considerably. How did she come up with that idea? It was a nearly fool-proof way to get us both out safely. She would then gather her things and meet me in the forest, where we would run off yet again. The only problem would be getting the guard and her parents to believe I'm her.

She spent a long time explaining how she acted around them and what I should do. It seemed we really were going to use the plan. My parents had even approved, stating that it was a great idea. They would do anything to see us out of here safely.

So here we stand, me with my hair out of its signature ponytail, a giant bow and clips on my head. I felt silly, but if it was what I had to do to get us both out of here safely, I would. Rin stood next to me, her hair tied up into a ponytail like mine usually was. My parents said we looked exactly like each other. She did really look like me, but I wasn't sure about myself. Was it really just a bow and a couple of hair clips to turn me into Rin?

That was almost a shot to my pride. That meant I had to look kinda girly if Rin could look like me and I could look like her. But I didn't actually mind, Rin was cute so I must look okay.

"You really think this will work?" I asked her for probably the thousandth time that day. She just rolled her eyes.

"Yes, it will. Now act like me. They have to be coming soon." She replied. Well, today was the day… There was still the chance they'd catch our little act, and we'd be screwed. If that happened, I don't know what we'd do. Rin would have to leave and I'd probably never get to see her again. That would really suck.

I just kept thinking about it, and how I wouldn't be able to tell her certain things if that happened. It better work, because I really don't want to tell her how I feel about her in a jail cell. Especially with my parents right next to us. But if our little trick was caught, I'd do it. I would at least want her to know before we're separated.

But what if they pulled us apart so fast I didn't have time? There was one thing I wanted to make sure I did, just in case. Only problem was that there was no privacy in a jail cell. We were just standing there nervously, tapping our feet, so my searching around for somewhere private was probably passed off as nervousness.

There was behind the beds, but that just didn't seem right. The only other private place was the curtain around the toilet… The curtain around the toilet! Without a second thought, I grabbed Rin's hand and pulled her over there. Luckily, it didn't smell gross since we both always flushed and the top toilet seat thing was closed. She looked at me in confusion, and I'm sure my parents were just as confused, but oh well.

"Rin…" I started, putting my hands on her shoulders, "Just in case this doesn't work… There's one thing I want to do…" I was mumbling pretty quietly in her ear, didn't want anyone else hearing.

"What do you mean Len?" The small hints of confusion in her voice were cute… If this didn't work, it was going to be hard to live without her.

"I just… If they catch us and take you, chances are we won't see each other again," I explained to her. Her eyes widened in realization and she nodded.

"I guess you're right about that. I don't want that to happen!" She shouted as she jumped forward and caught me in a tight hug. I almost stumbled out of the little curtain, but I managed to stay put. Reaching my arms around her shoulders, I hugged her back.

"I don't either, that's why we're going to make sure this works," I told her, patting her back. "But just in case… I want to do this okay?" I pulled back nervously, waiting for her answer even though she probably didn't know what I was talking about.

"Um okay? What do you mean?" She just looked so cute with her head tilted to the side, I couldn't hold back anymore.

"Rin…" I whispered as I leaned forward, putting one hand behind her head. The distance between our faces closed rather fast, and I could see her eyes widen as mine slipped shut. I was probably blushing like a maniac, but she probably was too, so it was okay.

Our lips slowly connected and I smiled to myself. I was proud that I hadn't backed off last second, because that was something I would probably do. She was frozen still for a few moments, but she began to kiss back after a little. I hugged her closer, my mind on cloud nine. It was our first _proper_ kiss. It felt so nice I didn't want to let go, but I knew I should.

I reluctantly began to pull back and was surprised to find Rin leaning forward to follow me. She didn't want to let go quite yet it seemed. She really did like me! With newfound happiness, I tilted my head slightly and deepened the kiss just a little bit. She made a small surprised squeaking sound, but I could feel her smile.

We had to part for air a little later, but it was obvious we were both really happy. Her hands were clasped behind her back, and she was staring at her toes with a soft blush on her face. She was smiling though, definitely smiling.

My face had a large grin on it, I'm sure of it. I put my hand on her shoulder and she looked up, still blushing rather brightly. I smiled and gave her a quick hug.

"I-I've been wanting to do that for a while…" I stuttered as I quickly looked down at my own feet, a feeling of nervousness striking me all of a sudden. My heartbeat was probably going as fast as a cheetah could run, and I knew my face was a tomato. I felt something warm on my cheek and raised my eyes.

"I don't mind. I have too," She admitted, pulling her hand away from my cheek. "Your parents are probably wondering what's going on. We should go out and hope this works." I just nodded and grabbed her hand, slowly walking out of the little curtain area. I sincerely hoped my blush was gone and that my parents wouldn't question us.

The aforementioned pink and purple haired couple opened their mouths-no doubt to question-but were interrupted by the rude guard walking up with two faint figures behind him.

I prayed to everything I could think of that this would work.

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**_A/N: So yeah, DON'T FORGET TO VOTE. I seriously need to know soon, or it's gonna take even longer for the next chapter -.- I don't like keeping people waiting T-T So please vote! _****_If you read the A/N: Please put "Shningleshnorp" in your review :D Oh, and please review xD_**

**__****_~Chika_**


	20. Chapter 19

**_A/N: Oh man, I am so sorry about this... I got lazy then decided that I'd start writing again once college started back up. Little did I know, I'd be doing homework till 11 every night -.- Weekends will be the only time I have free time, so only expect updates on weekends. And those are still busy cause my family travels a lot. I apologize deeply T-T_**

**_MasterVoiceMixer : Eh, sorry about that ^^; Well, it's here now._**

**_Thank you very much to MasterVoiceMixer and myhamsterhangsupsidedown. MasterVoiceMixer for (basically) telling me to get my butt in gear, in a nice way xD. And myhamsterhangsupsidedown for reviewing so many freaking chapters within a couple days o.O You guys inspired me again, so thank you!_**

**_Everyone should thank them for this chapter ^^;_**

**_Enjoy~_**

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Chapter 19

The guard slowly approached our cell, and I could see the faint silhouette of two more people, approaching a little ways behind him. No doubt those were Rin's 'parents'. I glanced over to Rin, and felt pretty confident that we could pull off the act. The way she was sitting, even her facial expressions appeared to mimic mine exactly, as my parents said, and they said I pulled off hers well. I just hope that her 'parents' will believe it as well, though I'm pretty sure they will. Rin had told me many times over the time we'd been together that they don't pay attention to anything but her work, and their weird fantasies.

"Well here goes nothing…" I whispered quietly to myself before putting on my best 'Rin-voice'. We'd even practice each other's voices, and were quite happy with the results. Now that I thought of it, even our voices sounded extremely similar, so it wasn't actually that hard to pull off each other's voices. After we'd discovered that little fact, I had begun to actually believe the switch might actually work. Let's hope it does…

"Alright you little scoundrels," The guard called to us, "It's time for…" He trailed of for a moment, looking back to Rin's 'parents'. "What's her name again?" Her 'mother', a tall blonde woman with extremely long hair that was pulled into a ponytail…thing on the side of her head, spoke up.

"It's the girl, Rin. That one." She stated as she pointed at me. It should have been a shot to my manly pride, but it was good she believed it so far. I slowly stood up, I hadn't realized I was sitting, and turned towards the real Rin. It was almost as though I were looking into a mirror, except the mirror could move independently. It was almost cool, but strange at the same time. I'm not used to someone else looking _exactly_ like me. I just hope she felt the same way, then I'd have done a good job looking like her.

It will probably be at least a week from now, probably more, until I'll be able to see her again, now that I thought of it. It had taken them about a week to get here; I wonder how far away they lived? It'll probably take a week to get back, and then it'll be another week for them to come back here, then _another_ week for them to bring her back… So probably at least three weeks actually. That'll be hard, but if it's what it takes for us to escape, I'll do it.

I turned the other way and glanced at my parents. It would be a lot longer than that, if ever, before I could see them again. We'd already said goodbye, but I still felt really sad about leaving them again. I smiled and gave them a small wave, making sure my eyes stayed dry before turning back to Rin's 'parents'.

"H-Hi again…" I stuttered out, in Rin's voice. It sounded funny, but I was used to it. We had actually been rehearsing things like this so I'd be used to it when the time came to talk. She'd said to act slightly shy around them, as she'd always done, so I made sure to do that. I was also supposed to look guilty for running away, so they wouldn't beat me… I lowered my head and put on my best guilty face.

Her 'mother', Neru as I was told, sighed. "Just hurry up and get out here, we need to get back as soon as possible." I nodded and quickly stood up. Walking towards the now open gate, I looked back and smiled at Rin, giving a small wave. She looked extremely sad, and I was having a hard time keeping the sadness out of my eyes as well. We'll see each other again. I kept repeating that in my head, hoping it would cheer me up enough.

I turned back towards the gate, and stepped out of the cell, the guard releasing the chains from my hand. I immediately began to rub my sore wrists. It felt amazing to have those horrible things off. The sound of the gate slamming shut brought my attention back to Rin. She was standing at the edge, holding onto the bars and smiling at me. I smiled back and began to walk towards her, when I was yanked back by her 'father', who was way stronger than he looked.

Before I turned around to walk with them, I called out a quick, "BYE!" in Rin's voice of course. My parent's returned the call, as well as Rin.

I was then yanked around a corner, and wouldn't be seeing them again for a long while. We walked through a maze of halls, which I was somehow able to remember from the first time we went down them. I have a good memory I guess? Though everywhere past our old cells was new, since I'd been knocked out cold when we were put in them.

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We eventually made it outside, and I didn't recognize anything whatsoever. I had definitely never been here before; though it was obvious I was still in the same country from all of the beggars running up for money, and the horribly crumbled buildings. It did look nicer than most villages though, so it must be closer to the center. Great, _more_ distance to cover once Rin's out.

As soon as we reached a beat up carriage, which I assumed we'd be taking back to Rin's place, I realized something. There was a giant castle in the distance. We were right next to where the royalty and all them lived. That meant we were smack dab in the middle of the country, and no matter which direction we went, it would be the same distance. _Wonderful…_ That also meant that soldiers would be able to catch up to us easier, since they were mostly stationed right here.

It was going to be even harder to escape than last time, that's for sure.

Weapons… We'd need them for sure. Rin had told me her 'father' was obsessed with weapons. Maybe I could steal a few before I left? Then at least we'd be armed. And if he had weapons, he should have armor as well right? Couldn't hurt to have that.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by someone speaking.

"Rin, _why_ would you run away like that?" Her mother asked me, quite angrily I might add. I had already been prepped for this by Rin, so I spouted out our rehearsed answer.

"W-well… I just wanted to try something new… I didn't think I'd actually be out for that long, and I was going to head back! But then I got arrested…" I trailed off for a moment, looking as guilty as I could possibly fake it. "I'm really sorry, it won't happen again…" My acting appeared to have paid off, because as Rin had predicted, I got a slap to the face and that was it.

"You'd better be telling the truth." She left it at that as she stared out the window of the carriage. My cheek stung, but I ignored it and looked out as well. It would be a good idea to memorize the route, even though I doubted I'd be here again. It would be useful to know though, because if I got a map somehow, I would be able to determine where I was by knowing where I've been. And that way, I could figure out the safest way out of here.

We had been in the carriage for a few days now, and Rin's 'father' had yet to speak to me. Well, she did say he was quiet. Our route so far was nearly straight, so it wasn't hard to remember. I just remembered the odd tree or rock here and there, as well as some random buildings that would probably show up on a map. We were a little more than halfway there, I'd overheard the driver mentioning to Rin's 'mother'.

As soon as we get there, I am supposed to go to Rin's room and gather things to survive, such as blankets and the two sleeping bags in the closet downstairs. They apparently had a big house, so they couldn't be poor. After I gather those things, I'll probably wait for her 'parents' to go to sleep, then raid her 'father's ' workshop for weapons and armor. It would be a good idea to stash those in Rin's room somewhere, and prepare a horse to leave before going to bed.

I couldn't just leave in the middle of the night, because they would just think Rin ran away again. They wouldn't know that she was still in the jail cell, so I had to show them.

I'd gone through this plan in my head many times over the trip, so it was pretty much ingrained into my brain by the time we'd gotten there. It was strange really, how quiet her 'parents' were. They hardly even talked to each other, let alone me. When they did speak to me though, Rin had told me never to refer to them as 'mom' and 'dad'. But rather I was supposed to call them by their real names. That kind of threw me off, but I supposed if they really weren't like a mom and dad to her, she wouldn't call them like that.

Anyway, we'd pulled up to some random place and gotten out of the carriage. Neither 'parent' spoke, so I wasn't sure how long we'd be walking, but that was quickly answered when I saw a large house in the distance. We wouldn't be walking too far, obviously.

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**_A/N: Huh, meant to actually introduce Rin's 'father' in this chapter. Guess I didn't get around to it. So guess that gives you until next chapter to vote if you haven't already. Mikuo's ahead by one vote, in case people want to know._**

**_UPDATE: Crap! The poll is tied now lol. It's obvious that it's between Mikuo and Taito now, so I'm going to clear the poll, and anyone who sees this, please vote so I can write the chapter xD Kinda hard to write when you don't know who you're writing ^^;_**

**_Mikuo -6  
_****_Taito -6  
_****_Akaito -4_**

**_So, I don't really deserve it for being so late... But please review? Pretty please? Oh, and feel free to yell at me if I'm this late again._**

**_~Chika_**


	21. Chapter 20

**_So it has come to my attention that someone has apparently stolen my story and is claiming it as their own. I don't appreciate that, so don't do it._**

**_A/N: Sorry about the delay again. Life is being an A-hole to me right now, with stupid college homework until insane hours of the night -.- Also busy with all the moving crap, and to top it off, we had to put my kitty down today T-T I've had her since I was 3 or 4, so that was very hard for me... I'll miss you Spidy!_**

**_Also, JayJay223 may be posting fan art for this story! I'm so happy! So that makes losing my cat a little better ^^_**

**_Taito won the poll. I'll close the poll so if people want to see the results, they can._**

**_I hope people like this chapter._**

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Chapter 20

~Len's POV~

Okay, so the walk to their house ended up being farther than I thought. Just because I can see something in the distance, does not mean it's close enough to walk to quickly. Note to self.

Anyway, after walking for probably two hours, we finally made it to the house. I don't really understand why the carriage couldn't take us the rest of the way, but oh well. Good exercise right? I'm probably not in good shape after being in a jail cell like that for so long, now that I think of it. Great, another reason it'll be hard to escape…

My eyes widened as soon as I took my first step into that mansion. The place was freaking huge! I knew I couldn't show that I was surprised, or it would be suspicious. But the place was gigantic, bigger than I'd imagined when Rin explained it to me.

The floors were all a nice shiny tile thing, with some giant mural or something in the middle of the floor. Two large staircases curved up on either side of the gigantic empty room, though there was a shelf and a couple chairs. Soft-looking carpet covered the floor above the stairs; it looked like something I could sleep on just as well as a bed. If only I could take some with me when I left.

"You might as well go to your room and get some rest," her 'father' finally spoke up. His voice was very… deep. It was quite nerve-racking actually. It felt as though if you didn't do what he said, you'd wake up dead the next day. Wait, how could you wake up if you were dead? Doesn't matter, that's still what it felt like.

"O-okay…" was my stuttered out response. Rin had never warned me what to do when her father spoke to her. I guess she figured that he wouldn't? Oh well, I hope the shy and nervous thing works for him too. I turned to head up the stairs, but was interrupted by that scarily deep voice again.

"It's in your best interest to sleep. You have a lot of work to do to make up for your absence,". And with that chilling comment, he turned and headed up one side of the stairs, followed by his wife.

I stood there, frozen for probably a minute. That guy was seriously scary. Sure he had purple hair, just like my dad, but it was darker, more sinister. So his scary looking hair and deep voice, combined with these bandages all over his body and torn up clothes made him a truly terrifying person. How did Rin stay calm around him?

I shook my head as I headed up the stairs, towards where Rin had said her room was. There were more doors than I'd thought, but it was easy to find, seeing as there was an orange sticker by the doorknob. At least they'd let her personalize her door.

Seeing as the rest of the house was ginormous, I shouldn't have been surprised, though I still gasped upon seeing the size of Rin's room. It was at least four times the size of my old room. She had a huge bed, as well as tons of space that she couldn't even fill up. Her _closet_ was as big as my entire room.

In a daze, I walked over and sat on the edge of Rin's bed. It was so soft, there's no way to describe it. If I lay down, there's no doubt I would pass out instantly. That can't happen; I've got to gather supplies to travel with. Time to start opening doors.

It took probably half an hour to find, but I was lucky it was on the same side of the house as Rin's room. Her father's weapon room was right in front of me. It had all sorts of things; katana, broadswords, rapiers, bow and arrows, any sort of weapon you could think of. My gaze was immediately drawn to the large, shiny katana in the back of the room.

My father had the strangest obsession with those things. He had saved up all the spare money he could find, years ago, and bought one. Somehow, he already knew how to use it too. I'm assuming he was probably trained when he was younger, and he told me they made him feel like a samurai.

He'd trained me with it, taught me how to use it. I didn't expect Rin's father to have one, but this was excellent. There was something I could work with. As for Rin, I didn't know exactly what she was good with. The katana would be what I use for sure, but for Rin…

I wouldn't want her to be in the middle of the fighting, so probably a long range weapon. The bow and arrows would do, the only problem is I don't know if she can use them. To be safe, I grabbed a nice looking rapier as well. With their sharpness, I'm sure she could defend herself with one.

As I had thought in the carriage ride, her 'father' did indeed have armor. There was thick, steel plated armor, but that'd be too much weight for us. We're not strong enough to hold it up. What I did see however, were these light looking leather things that looked like they were meant to wear under clothes. They had metal sheets in areas that would be important to protect, such as the heart, and weren't overly heavy.

Perfect.

* * *

After stashing the weapons and armor away under Rin's bed, I headed towards where I was told the kitchen would be. There were quite a few canned foods worth gathering, and I spotted bananas and oranges! I'd bring the bananas for sure, but the oranges probably wouldn't last until Rin got out… I grabbed them anyway, just in case.

All the food was soon stashed under the bed as well. It was time for the horse.

Their back yard was enormous. No other word for it. I ignored my awe at the size, and headed towards the stable I spotted on the other side of the house. There were four horses there, and I even saw the horse that Rin had been riding when I met her. It had apparently escaped. If she had chosen that horse to run away with, I had no doubt that it was probably the best one.

I grabbed all the gear I would need to ride, and put it all on that horse. I knew its name was Josephine from the little plank on the wall behind her. All the gear I grabbed had that name etched into it as well, so I knew it'd fit.

After I was done in the stables, I headed back to Rin's room, and hoped I would wake up early enough to be awake before her 'parents'.

Tomorrow, I put the rest of the plan into action!

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**_A/N: I hope you enjoyed, and please review. I'll really try not to be so slow next time... Oh, and so I don't forget this date:_**

**_R.I.P._**

**_Spider_**

**_06.04.1998-05.03.2011 5:00 PM_**

**_I'll miss you my silly kitty!_**

**_Hah, I'm uploading right at midnight xD_**

**_~Chika_**


	22. Chapter 21

**_A/N: Sorry about that. I was gonna post this a few days ago, but then fanfiction changed and I couldn't figure it out, only to realize that the new fanfiction doesn't work with Google Chrome -.- (For me anyway) So I fished out the hidden Internet Explorer icon and here we are xD_**

**_JayJay223 Made fanart :D I'll post a link on my profile (near the bottom in my list of stories and summaries, above the really long random half-bold thing) as soon as I'm done posting this. I'm sooooo happy people like it enough to do fanart! Thanks JayJay!_**

_**ReconPYHC: Thanks for the reviews ^^ Wow, I'm glad you like it so much! I hope this chappy lives up to your expectations! Oh, and you get another cliffy I guess. lol. A manga about this? Really? Can I see? -begging face- Oh, and as for their outfits, they're pretty plain ^^ Refer to fanart above xD**_

_**I will try to get updates sooner, I just hope fanfiction decides to work on Google Chrome soon -.- Oh, and I apologize for slow updates, I blame homework and re-obsessing over Final Fantasy XIII xD I FINALLY BEAT IT! XD And their's gonna be a XIII-2! A sequel! Too bad I have to wait a year or more -.- I also want Versus XIII to come out T-T gah!**_

_**Ahem, I'll shut up now. Enjoy!**_

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Chapter 20

~Len's POV~

It was hard to fall asleep that night. I wasn't used to being alone anymore, and even sleeping on that huge comfortable bed, I just couldn't sleep. It felt… wrong without Rin next to me. It was… strange I guess. It probably didn't help that I was also worried about our plan as well, though I guess it'd be pretty straightforward. All I have to do is show them that I'm not Rin and take off. Hopefully they won't catch me, because that would ruin it. But I shouldn't be worrying, there's nothing else to do.

Eventually, I managed to fall into a dreamless sleep, despite my worries.

The next day, I was woken up by loud banging on Rin's door. Jolting up into a sitting position, I stared at the shaking door. I froze. They woke up before me. That was not part of the plan! I was supposed to wake up first and store everything with that horse!

"Rin, you'd better be getting up. Your first job is to clean the stables. We're going to check when we're done with breakfast and if you're not there…" Her 'mother's' voice trailed off, "I'm sure you can guess." That last sentence had a terrifying tone to it. "If you do well, you can have breakfast." I have to do a good job cleaning in order to get breakfast? That seems cruel. I can see why she ran away, even though she's got that amazing room.

"O-okay…" My Rin-voice squeaked out. I got lucky though, cleaning the stables. I still get to go there right away and get my things all set up. I just have to make sure to do it quickly, since I don't know how long they take to eat breakfast.

Not sensing any time to waste, I immediately gathered the things I'd stored under Rin's bed and carefully walked out into the hall. I could hear the clinking of silverware on what was probably plates, and whatever they were eating smelled really good, but I couldn't afford to be distracted. All of the things I was carrying were pretty heavy, and I had to be careful not to trip on something.

My arms strained under the weight, but I'd managed to get down the stairs and out the door without her 'parents' noticing myself or the things I was carrying. As soon as the door was closed though, I had to nearly drop everything. The weight was killing my arms, which hadn't really been used all that much while I was in that cell, so it makes sense that they were weak. That was definitely not helping me now.

They'd better gain their strength back soon or there could be problems.

I looked down at the pile of things at my feet and sighed. No way I could carry it all the way to the stables with my wimp-arms. Making multiple trips would have to do. I reached down and scooped up the armor and one of the small boxes I'd filled with cans. The box was heavier than I thought, but by stacking it on top of the armor I somehow managed to get it all the way to the stables.

After about three trips, I'd managed to get everything in there, and luckily that horse was quite strong. It didn't seem to mind all of the stuff on its back. Hopefully it'll feel the same when I'm on its back. There could be a problem if the horse decides it doesn't like me when I have to take off.

All that's left to do is wait until Rin's 'parents' come to the stables. I sat down a small pile of hay next to that horse, Josephine. Sitting for a little while, I began to think, it would probably be a good idea to put on some of that armor stuff now, just in case Rin's 'father' likes to carry some of his weapons with him. I could have a problem if they get horses as well and chase me, though I'm not sure if that's likely. But still, just in case.

Even though the armor appeared to be meant for wearing under clothes, I just put it on top since I didn't know how long they would be. It was big on me, but that was okay. It meant more protection, right? Though it was still somewhat heavy, and my arms were weak… I'd be slow to move in it, but it should be fine once I get used to it.

I also decided to take off the giant bow and put my hair back into its little ponytail thing, so it'd be easier for them to tell that I wasn't Rin. I almost forgot to take out the little barrette things, since I'd somehow grown used to wearing them.

As soon as I'd finished snapping one of the metal rings onto my wrist, I heard a somewhat loud voice talking and footsteps approaching. It's showtime.

I quickly got up and jumped onto Josephine, whom I'd already got all ready to go, and galloped out of the stable.

It was fairly obvious I startled them. I mean, who would expect someone who was supposed to be cleaning the stables to randomly burst out on one of the horses covered in stuff? I wouldn't expect it, but that's beside the point.

"Rin! What are you doing?" her 'mother' shouted at me. I looked over as we(Josephine and I) jumped past them and slowed to a stop. Her 'father' gave me a sharp glare.

"You are _not_ running away again," he stated coolly. Luckily, it looked like he didn't have a weapon on him. I took a deep breath.

"I'm not Rin, you got the wrong person. Rin's still back in the jail, sorry!" Their shocked faces told me everything. I had them fooled and everything. I couldn't help the giant grin from breaking out on my face, "We only look similar, sorry to tell you. It took a lot to… convince… her to agree to this," I decided to put in the effect that I forced her into it, so they wouldn't be harsh on her for tricking them.

"You're not Rin?" her 'mother' asked, almost in disbelief. I'd even stopped changing my voice, and it should be obvious by now…

"I'm a boy! How could I be Rin?" They just looked confused… Is it really that unbelievable that I'm a boy? Ugh. I lifted my shirt. "See? I'm a _boy_!" They just blinked a couple times, before her 'father' lunged forward and grabbed at me.

"You get back here, we're turning you in!" Her 'mother' shouted when I pulled Josephine back so I was out of reach.

"No way!" I turned to take off again, but decided to say one more thing, just to make sure they'd go get Rin. "Looks like you'll have to go back to get your little servant. I apologize for wasting your time," I said as I threw in a little bow before turning to leave.

"Gah, what a waste of time! We'll just adopt someone else from that orphanage down the street," I froze in disbelief as I heard her 'mother' turn and speak to her 'father'.

"Yeah, she's too much work," her 'father' agreed. It felt as though something heavy fell from the sky and landed right on top of me. They weren't going to get Rin? What?

"Y-you're not going to get her?" I asked them in disbelief. They just glared and lunged at me, as they shouted multiple things about us being a pain, too much work, and things like that. I just shook my head and turned Josephine towards the woods behind their backyard. Best place to lose pursuers is a forest after all…

But, they weren't going to get Rin? Now what? I've only got one thing to say, and please, excuse my language.

Shit.

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**_A/N: Hm. No other comments this time amazingly. Now to go fix up my old FF XIII story!_**

**_~Chika_**


	23. Chapter 22

**_A/N: Wow, this update seems REALLY fast to me lol. I finally figured out where this story is going! Which means that I actually want to write it now, so updates should be faster. Oh, and I tossed in even more vocaloids ^^; wasn't planning on it at all, but now it's necessary for the ending I came up with. Anyway! I hope you like this chapter. I'm excited to write the rest now :D_**

**_Plouff - I'm glad you thought so lol. Thanks for reviewing ^^_**

**_ReconPHYC - Sorry, I'm crazy about writing cliff hangers, but I understand how annoying they can be xD I really should stop lol And look, it is soon! (er than normal ^^;) I thanks yous fors thes reviews!_**

**_Davison - I'm glad you like it, and I'll try to get back to Rin soon xD Thanks for the review!_**

**_Enjoy~_**

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Chapter 22

~Len's POV~

It was cold, rainy and I had to sit outside under a tree. The tree was a horrible umbrella; all my clothes were soaked through and I felt chills all the way to my bones.

"A-a… Achoo!" And I was sneezing. Perfect. A cold to go with this already crappy situation. At least Rin's safe inside… GAH! Optimism seems pointless. Yes, she's safe and warm inside, but she's in a stinking _jail cell, alone_! My parents are there too though, so they're probably helping Rin as best they can. I hope they're alright…

"Achoo!"

I still can't believe I'd forgotten to grab those tarps that I'd hidden in the stables. Guess I was in too much of a rush… If we had one, and least it could keep myself and Josephine dry in this rotten weather. The worst thing about it was that it was the middle of the day! I should be travelling, trying to get closer to Rin so I could find some way to get her out of that place! But nooooo. I just had to be sitting under a stinking tree, in the middle of the day, catching a cold instead. I really curse myself for forgetting the stupid tarp.

Heck, the thing that made me the maddest wasn't even that it was raining. It was that it was raining _during the day_. If it was nighttime, I wouldn't have anywhere to go anyway. I could just sit there and sleep through it. But raining cats and dogs in the middle of the day?

Sighing, I slumped forward and rested my head in between my knees to keep my ears at least a little warm. I believe Rin's horse to be psychic, because it came over and lay right next to me. I never knew horses were so warm, but definitely grateful for it. She smelt a little funny because she's wet, but I'm not complaining.

Leaning over, I rested my body against the horse's side and closed my eyes. There's nothing to do anyway, might as well try to get some rest for the cold that I was sure was coming.

A large jolt below me sprung me into wakefulness. Instantly, an arrow of fear burst through my body and I went rigid. Did Rin's 'parents' already track me down? Am I on the way to that jail as we speak? Or could it be an earthquake? Tons of other horrible scenarios rushed into my head, but none of them prepared me for what I saw when I opened my eyes.

Blue? Bobbing up and down? What?

I felt something under my legs and against my chest, which restricted my movements. Figuring I was probably tied to something, I looked down. I was on someone's… back…? And they had _blue_ hair? Wait, that shouldn't be what surprised me.

"He's awake!" I heard a female voice to my left. Whirling my head around, I saw a rather tall woman with reddish-brown hair and rather large… Okay, I swear I'm not a pervert, but they're kind of hard not to notice… My mom's are the same way…

Anyway, I swiveled my head back to the one piggybacking me around. It was a guy, and from how high I was I got a sense that he's pretty tall too. But his blue hair… It shouldn't surprise me, my parents having purple and pink hair, but it still did somehow. It was a seriously deep blue color that I didn't even know existed. On _hair_ nonetheless.

"Hey kid, are you alright?" The man carrying me turned his head to glance at me. I just nodded dumbly, confused as ever. Looking at my surroundings, I was still in a forest and Josephine was walking next to us, all my stuff packed nicely onto her back. Who were these people and where were they taking us?

The woman must have seen my confusion, for she called out to me, "I'm Meiko, and the guy carrying you is Kaito. What were you doing, sitting in a forest in the pouring rain like that?" As soon as she said it, I realized that it wasn't raining anymore, and the sun was a little further down towards the horizon. Seems I had managed to fall asleep.

"Uh…" Was my clever response. What could I tell them? They obviously didn't know I was kind of a fugitive. The Kaito guy lifted me a little and readjusted his arms.

"You can tell us. We won't tell anyone," He reassured me. What was I supposed to do? Two strangers were carrying me somewhere, and wanted to know why I was sleeping in the forest. That's a hard one to explain. I can't just tell them I'm trying to break someone out of jail and escape from the country. _That_ would go well.

"I-I'm just trying to get to the central city…" I settled for telling them that. It is true after all. They obviously knew there was more to it, I was sleeping in a _forest_ in the pouring rain, but they didn't question. "So where are you taking me?"

The woman, Meiko, turned and smiled at me, "We're taking you back to our place. You're going to catch a cold like that, and it looks like it'll rain again tonight. I hope you don't mind," she told me. Wait, these two were taking a stranger into their house? I suppose I should be thankful, but why?

"Um… Thanks… I appreciate it, but why?" I questioned in confusion. Kaito turned his head to me once more.

"Well, we couldn't just leave you out there could we?" A simple response. I guess it makes sense though. It appeared as though I could trust them, but I was still slightly suspicious. Who wouldn't be?

"How did you find me? I thought I was pretty deep in the forest where no one could find me…" I probably should have left that last part out. Gives them the idea that I don't want to be found, which I suppose is true, but only by certain people.

"You know that clearing you were sleeping in?" Meiko asked me. I nodded my head; it was a large clearing, with one huge tree in the middle and lots of flowers around. I decided to stay there because it was nice scenery to stare at in a rainstorm.

"Me and Meiko here used to always come here as little kids. We found it exploring one day, I don't know how young we were, but we liked it and just kept coming back. It's been a while since we last came here, and it always looks nicest after rain so we decided to visit again. Funny it was this specific day you ended up there, fate works in funny ways," The Kaito guy explained with a grin on his face.

"And do you want to know how we found you? You were hidden behind that bush quite well you know," I'd forgotten, but I was indeed under a tree surrounded by bushes. How did they find me? Meiko took my silence as a yes and went on to explain, "Well let's just say Kaito's a little clumsy. He tripped on a stick and face planted right into one of the bushes, the one with the thorns. He saw you through a gap in the branches," Meiko explained laughing, while Kaito just hunched down in embarrassment.

"Do you always have to tell people about my clumsiness?" He complained. Meiko laughed and slapped his shoulder next to my arm.

"Of course! It's one of the best things about you!" She continued laughing. Kaito moved his head a little, and I assumed he was rolling his eyes.

"What about you're drinking problem?" Meiko sent a glare that would murder bunnies. Kaito shut up. It was scary.

After a few moments of silence, Kaito bravely spoke up again, "I was only going to say that you're entertaining when you're drunk…" He turned his head slightly and gave me a quick wink, whispering, "I hope you can stand, because I'm about to drop you…" What?

True to his word, Kaito's arms released me and I fell to the ground, landing on my feet luckily. Looking up, I saw Kaito fly sideways into a tree. Meiko was standing where he used to be, her fist out. She _punched_ him into that tree? And he was laughing?

These people were weird. That's for sure. I just stared in bewilderment as Meiko sighed and walked over to him to help him up. She pulled him up and they both walked back over to me, Kaito still doing some chuckle/laugh/giggle thing. I'm not sure what you'd call it really.

"Good, you can walk," Kaito stated when he saw me standing up. His eyes suddenly widened and he jumped back covering his face, just in time to avoid Meiko's spinning punch. "I wasn't talking to you!" He shouted desperately, pointing to me.

"Oh, sorry," Meiko grinned and laughed, pulling him off the ground again. They have an interesting sense of humor…

After walking a little ways more, me on my own feet this time, I noticed the trees were beginning to thin out. We must've been near the edge of the forest.

"We're almost there," Kaito told me, "You can tie up your horse next to ours, near the carriage in the front." I nodded and grabbed hold of Josephine's reigns. She's a smart horse, she knew to follow us without me even holding them, but I figure I should now, just in case.

As soon as we exited the forest, I saw a small wooden cottage. It wasn't anything fancy, but it looked like a nice place to live, especially with that nice forest clearing not so far away. When all this is over and done with, I think I'd like to live somewhere like this. Rin would love it too. The two of us in a nice, secluded area, with our own little hiding place in the forest. I'd really like it. I know a warm smile had snaked its way onto my face, and my cheeks felt slightly warm at the thought, but I don't believe I was blushing.

But the thought of living somewhere like this, with Rin… It brought hope. If I could find somewhere like this, maybe we'd have something to look forward to after all. I bet these two love it here. Then again, it sounds like they've lived here practically their whole lives, so maybe not. Whatever, the point is, I liked it there.

The only problem was that there was still daylight. I could be travelling… I suppose if it was going to rain again tonight though, maybe it would be better to wait it out. I don't appear to have a cold, and sleeping in the rain again could give me one, which would be an even worse setback.

My mind made up, I headed into the little cottage.

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**_A/N: I think the chapter is longer than normal too lol. Funny what happens when you finally figure out the story after a really easy Chemistry final. Seriously, I was done in half an hour and had the rest of the time to work on Escaping. I figured out the ending when I got home though ^^. Anyway, I hope you like how this goes, and please review ^^_**

**_OH, and I totally redid my profile. It's a LOT easier to read now, and I'll put up status updates on my stories practically every day once summer starts (cause I'll have nothing else to do lol) So check it out if you want to know how things are coming along._**

**_~Chika_**


	24. Chapter 23

**_A/N: Ack! Sorry about the wait guys... I told some people it'd be out by the weekend (last weekend? Two weekends ago?), but I lied. I apologize. I should finally stop being busy around this week. But then again I've still got to unpack -.- So I can't really promise anything... I'll try to be fast though! And I'll try to not get lazy ^^;_**

**_Anon Review Replies:_**

**_Plouff - Haha, I wasn't even planning to put them in. Just happened, but it finally allowed me to find an ending! Yay xD Thanks for reviewing!_**

**_Hope you enjoy the chapter!_**

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Chapter 23

~Len's POV~

It was just as cozy inside as out. There was a nice fireplace in the front room, which also had two small couches. They looked really squishy and comfortable, and Kaito and Meiko had told me to make myself at home, so I went and sat on the one closest to the fireplace.

The heat felt so nice, after being out in the freezing cold for so long. My hands stretched themselves out to the heat of the fire Kaito had made as soon as we'd gotten back. He came over and sat next to me, warming his hands as well while Meiko went somewhere else in the house to do one thing or another.

We just sat there for a long while, and I felt my head bobbing up and down, trying not to fall asleep. I could tell that Kaito was doing the exact same thing as me from the few times my head jerked enough to put me into complete consciousness. I was jolted more awake when I smelt something _really_ good in front of my nose.

Quickly swinging my head back, I completely opened my eyes and saw a nice hot bowl of soup on the small coffee table. Looking up, I saw Meiko smiling as she put another bowl in front of Kaito, who had the same reaction as me. In a zombie-like manner, he picked up the spoon and took a sip of the soup.

"ThannnkkksssMeiikkooo…" He slurred out, half asleep, "Goodas ever…." He continued talking small sips and Meiko just giggled at him and sat down as well, beginning to eat her soup. I looked down and took another sniff. It smelt _extremely_ good. Experimentally, I gathered a little of the warm liquid onto the spoon and sipped it. It tasted as good as it smells. I have no clue what it was, but it had the perfect mix of spicy, sour and whatever else you could think of in a perfect soup.

I gulped down the rest of it insanely fast, probably too fast, and laid back on the couch, fuller than I'd been in a long time. To my surprise, Meiko was already done as well. And I thought I ate fast.

"So what's your name?" She asked. Come to think of it, I never did mention my name. That's pretty rude…Oops.

"I'm Len," I told her with a smile, "Thanks for all of this. You guys are just too nice. And the soup was amazing!" I told her. I really wanted her to understand my appreciation. People don't just take someone in and take care of them like this, it's not normal. She reached around Kaito and patted my shoulder.

"No problem, we like to help people. And I'm glad you like the soup, it's my secret recipe," She smiled and retracted her hand, settling for placing it on Kaito's shoulder. "Do you mind if I ask why you need to go there without being spotted?" I bit my lip and looked down. I know I could trust them; they're amazing people. But… You know what? I have people who are willing to listen right here. Why not tell them?

"I guess I can tell you…" I trailed off, not exactly sure where to start. "You see, there's this… Uh… My…" I wasn't exactly sure how to refer to Rin. She's not just some girl, she's not really my girlfriend, but I think we're more than friends… I'll just go with friend, it'll raise less questions. "I have a friend there whom I really need to help out." Meiko and Kaito nodded, motioning for me to continue. Kaito had finished his soup, and I suppose they knew there was more to it than just that. When I didn't continue, Kaito spoke up.

"What's her name?" I didn't ask how they knew it was a girl. I guess I'd left hints in my other sentence without knowing it.

"H-her name's Rin. I… I need to get her out of there so we can leave the country…" I admitted. Though the way I put it made it sound like we were running away together… I guess technically we were, but not in _that_ way. I felt something warm on my back, and looked up to see Kaito rubbing his hand on my back, in a comforting motion.

"So this Rin is important to you, right?" Meiko asked, and when I nodded she continued, "So you need to get there, and I'm assuming that means pretty quickly. You don't want to leave her waiting huh?" I shook my head and smiled.

"No, there's a lot more to it than that though."

I knew I could trust them. They would understand me. So I went on to tell the entire story of how we went into debt and I ran away. How I met Rin, and we decided to travel together. How we got caught and our plan to escape. How the plan worked to a certain point, but failed. And how I was now on my way to break her out of there. I left out certain little details, of course.

"Wow, sounds like you two are in a bit of a mess," Kaito stated. I nodded sadly.

"All I know is that I need to get there. I have no clue how I'm going to get her out or where we'll go afterwards. Out of the country for sure, but after that I have no idea," I admitted to them, "Thanks for listening you guys. It means a lot."

"We always listen and try to see what we can do," Meiko responded, rustling my hair, "And while we can't help you with breaking her out or running out of the country, I've got a way to get you to the city quickly." My eyes widened in disbelief. I'm basically a criminal, but they're going to help? They've got to be the nicest people ever!

"Wha-what? B-but… You don't have to do anything! I'm a fugitive! What if they put you in jail too? It's bad enough I got Rin thrown in there…" Kaito and Meiko shared a look.

"We actually need to go there anyway. Traveling by carriage on roads will be a lot faster than by horse in the forest you know. We're actually a sort of taxi service, I guess you could say. People pay us, and we and our horses bring them places. We need to go there to pick up a high paying customer anyway, you might as well come. We can even strap Josephine up as an extra horse."

These people… They're amazing. I couldn't help but to leap forward and hug them both.

"You have no idea how much this will mean to me you guys!" I told them with tears of joy streaming out of my eyes, "I can't believe this…" I whispered to myself as a sort of afterthought.

"Well you'd better start believing it kid. We leave tomorrow morning," Kaito told me when I finally let go of them. They both had these huge grins on their faces. I guess they really like to help people.

"You look tired," Meiko observed when my head started doing the tilty thing again, "Why don't you go get some rest. There's a nice spare bedroom over by the kitchen," she pointed to a hallway and I thanked her before telling them goodnight.

I decided to use the bathroom quickly before I went to bed, so I went back to ask where it was, but stopped myself.

Meiko was leaning against Kaito, her eyes closed peacefully as her head rested on his shoulder. I could see that their hands were intertwined, and they both had soft smiles on their faces. I… I really hope Rin and I could be like that one day, without worries.

"It's nice to finally be able to do something other than sitting around here all day…" I heard Meiko's quiet murmur. Kaito nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it's definitely better than sitting around and drinking. That's bad for your health you kn-OW!" The sweet moment was over when Kaito said something stupid and Meiko whacked him in the face. I raised my hand to my mouth to prevent myself from laughing. Okay, so maybe I didn't want to be exactly like them.

I quietly turned around and headed to where my room would be. I didn't _really_ need the bathroom. I'll ask in the morning.

It's funny how I've only been traveling for two days since I left the horrible place where Rin's supposed 'parents' lived, and yet the moment I flopped on the bed it was like I was laying on heaven. Sleeping on the cold hard ground really does that to people. And the other thing, I couldn't help but grab one of the spare pillows on the other side of the bed and hug it close to me. I really wish Rin were here. She would love Kaito and Meiko…

I squeezed the pillow a little tighter and drifted off to sleep.

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**_A/N: Well, I hope you liked it! I can't promise when the next chapter will be out, cause imma be running around like a madman with unpacking for the next few days. Hopefully soon though! Please leave a review!_**

**_~Chika_**


	25. Chapter 24

**I am so sorry for dying off the face of the earth people! Moving apparently gave me a life and now I'm in college. So, good news and bad news people. **

**The bad news: I am putting this story on Hiatus because I went back through it and it sucks. It moves way too slowly and I hate the way I have written it. **

**The good news: I have written up a whole new (3,000 word) plan for this story, with every little detail on what I plan to do. I have fleshed out the story more and actually given names to things, like the countries and so on. While the updates will not be fast for my remake, I plan to write the entire thing out and finally get the story finished, with higher quality than before, so look out for it! The chapters will be much longer than they were for this one, and hopefully the story won't feel like it is moving to slowly now. I am extremely sorry for the wait, but hopefully the new and improved version of Escaping will be worth it! I'm working on drawing a cover for it, but that will be a slow process. For now I just hope you enjoy it. The first chapter will be posted shortly.**

**If I still have readers after having taken so long, I will be surprised lol. Please give the new story a chance :)**

**Oh, and since we aren't allowed to have authors notes as chapters, here's what I had written for the next chapter before I decided to remake the story.**

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Chapter 24

~Len's POV~

I woke up the next morning pretty quickly. Usually I'm a little groggy when I wake up in the mornings, but I felt completely rested, which was a nice change. For a second I wondered where I was, when I realized I was in a comfortable bed. For a second I almost wanted to believe that everything that had happened was a dream, but then I remembered where I was. Those two nice people, Kaito and Meiko, had let me stay here, and they were even going to help me! And besides, I wouldn't know Rin if all of this was a dream. Then again, neither her nor my parents would be in jail… Oh well, can't change the past.

I got up and wandered out into the hallway when I realized that I still had to go to the bathroom. The only problem was that I had no idea where it was. Instead of wandering around trying to find it, I decided to go back to that room we'd eaten in the night before and hope that one of them was awake. Lucky for me, Kaito was sitting on the couch reading a book.

"Um Kaito?" I asked as I walked into the room with him. He raised his head to look over the book at me and nodded for me to continue. "I was just wondering where your bathroom is," I told him. He pointed back towards the hallway I'd walked from.

"It's next to the bedroom you were sleeping in. Just one door down," He said as he went back to reading his book. I thanked him and headed back down the hall. Let me say: It's nice to be able to use a real bathroom again. It's things like that you don't think about before leaving your house to wander a forest.

I headed back into what I would assume is their living room, considering the couch, and sat down on the side opposite Kaito. All I could think about was how to rescue Rin. How was I supposed to break into a jail, break someone out and get out without being caught? I just couldn't think of a way to do it.

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**I may come back and finish this version of the story one day because I promised I would, but if I do it will be after the remake is done.**

**So please check out the remake and let me know if it is any better! It will just be called "Escaping - Remake" so pretty easy to find.**

**I miss you all!**

**~Chika**


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